


powerpuff boys

by 98line



Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: 00 line are triplets, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Lee Sangyeon's A+ Parenting, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-21
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2019-06-22 09:27:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 19,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15578835
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/98line/pseuds/98line
Summary: “Dad, who's your favorite son?”“I don't have a favorite son. I love you all equally.”“Yeah, but if Sunwoo, Youngjae and I were drowning, you'd save me, right?”“You can all learn how to swim.”





	1. goodbye kiss

**Author's Note:**

  * For [moehak](https://archiveofourown.org/users/moehak/gifts), [brdfrdzen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/brdfrdzen/gifts).

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon doesn't remember exactly when goodbye kisses became embarrassing, but Hyunjun, Sunwoo and Youngjae are not allowed to leave the car without giving Sangyeon his goodbye kiss.

Lee Sangyeon prides himself in being a morning person — partly because mornings are quiet and the only part of the day he gets to enjoy some silence and calm, and mostly because his three kids, Hyunjun, Sunwoo and Youngjae, all hate mornings, and he has to do an insane amount of extra effort to wake them up and get them to get ready in the morning. Sangyeon wakes up, brews himself some coffee and prepares some substantial breakfast for his ever growing babies while he waits for them to dress up. Teenage boys think breakfast is boring and prefer to live off snacks and frozen food for some reason Sangyeon is yet to understand, and he doesn’t trust them to use their lunch money with actual food, so he always tries to convince them to eat breakfast and packs them lunch every single day. 

Youngjae is the first one to show up with his hair all over the place, puffy eyes and crinkly uniform, buttoned up wrong with his tie hanging loose. “Morning, dad.”

“At what time did you go to sleep last night?” Sangyeon asks, as he steps closer to Youngjae and starts fiddling with the tie until he eventually knots it around his neck and smoothes the collar, folding it properly. “You look tired.”

_“Late.”_

“That’s not an answer.” He says, resting his hands on Youngjae’s shoulders. _When did his shoulders get that broad?,_ Sangyeon asks himself. He doesn’t remember Youngjae growing up to be almost as tall as him either. “I mean it, baby. You need to sleep.”

“I know, dad.” Youngjae pouts. Sangyeon takes a deep breath. It isn’t worth it. Instead of pushing it, he decides to let it go and says, “Come on now, I made you breakfast. Let’s eat.” 

Hyunjun is the next one to walk into the kitchen, all dressed up with his perfectly ironed uniform and three duffle bags hanging around his shoulders. To Sangyeon, it’s a relief that at least one of his sons knows how to knot a tie and how to iron his clothes without completely carbonizing them. He gives Sangyeon a kiss on the cheek and sits on his usual spot besides Youngjae to have breakfast. Sangyeon takes a peek at the clock; there’s still some time left before they have to leave, and he knows how grumpy Sunwoo gets in the morning; rushing him doesn’t help with his mood either, so Sangyeon just lets him be for the time being. 

Only when there’s five minutes left before the time they _really_ need to get going and Sunwoo still hasn’t shown up that Sangyeon speaks up. He knocks on Sunwoo’s for a moment before saying, “Sunwoo, we’re going to be late if you don’t hurry up. I’m going down to the parking lot with your brothers, meet us outside or else I’ll leave you behind!”

 _Silence._ Sangyeon rubs his temples, gets his briefcase and jacket and catches the elevator with Hyunjun and Youngjae. They get in the car, settle down and buckle up and leave the parking lot. Sangyeon looks at the clock again as they wait for Sunwoo to come down, and they’re already late. Great. So Sangyeon has no option but to honk when he sees Sunwoo lazily strolling down the entrance hall of their apartment building, which startles him and gets him to run to the car.

“Oh my God, dad, can you stop honking? Can you please stop honking?” Sunwoo says hurriedly, as he gets in the car and tries to fit in the midst of Hyunjun’s bags piled on the backseat. “Do you really need these many bags? You’re going to school, not moving to another country.”

“I have dance practice after school. Unlike your _lazy_ ass.”

“What did I do to deserve this slander? I literally just woke up, gimme a break.” Sunwoo whines, resting his head on top of Hyunjun’s bags, only to have the oldest of the three quickly push his head away. “Nope, we’re not doing this. This bag costs more than your entire existence. I don’t want your lice all over it.”

“It’s a fucking bag, dude. Chill.”

 _“Who the fuck taught you how to swear?”_ Sangyeon asks from the driver seat, indignant. Youngjae chokes on his drink as he tries to contain his laughter without spilling his drink. “Dear Lord, kids nowadays are fucking impossible.” 

Much to their luck, there isn’t much traffic, so the ride to their school is relatively quick. Sunwoo drowns in the music in his earphones, mind already lost somewhere else, and stays silent. Hyunjun is on his phone most of the time, texting God knows who about God knows what, and still makes an effort to keep the conversation going. Youngjae just blabbers throughout the ride; about this cute boy named Felix in his English class that has a voice deeper than the Pacific Ocean, about this new game he saw online and is dying to buy when it’s released. Unimportant things, mostly, but Sangyeon likes that they share even the smallest things with him. It makes him happy.

Sangyeon stops the car just in front of the school gates, hands hands each of them a lunchbox and looks around to see if they need anything else. Mints, sunscreen, chapstick, condoms; he’s got everything they could possibly need in case of an emergency. “Got everything you need for school?”

“Yes, dad.” They say in unison. Youngjae opens the door, Sangyeon is quick to point out something is missing as he clears his throat. “ _Ahem._ Aren’t you forgetting something?”

“What?”

_“Where’s my kiss?”_

“Dad, we’re late.” Sunwoo tries to say, but Sangyeon doesn’t relent. He refuses to go on with his day without his goodbye kiss. “My kiss. The three of you. _Now._ ”

Groaning, the three of them line up to give Sangyeon his goodbye kiss and go, one by one, give their dad a kiss.

“Now you’re free to go. Bye, kids, I’ll see you later!”


	2. dance recital

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon has no idea of how dance recitals, camera flashes or being quiet during a performance work, but that's okay. Hyunjun forgives his clumsiness.

Lee Sangyeon prides himself in being the father of three incredibly talented boys — Youngjae excels in sports, skating and dancing, Sunwoo is an amazing soccer player that is also interested in singing, rapping and composing, Hyunjun shines in contemporary dance and outstands with his archery skills. Sangyeon is confident to say, with every reason to do so, that his sons are the most talented boys in the planet. 

So of course, when Hyunjun is invited by his dance academy to perform at their dance recital, Sangyeon clears out his entire schedule for a month, calls every single person in the family to let them know that his son was invited to perform at this renowned dance academy recital, and tells absolutely everyone about it. His coworkers, his boss, his neighbours, the lady at the flower shop he went to order a bouquet for Hyunjun, the cashier from the supermarket he usually goes to for grocery shopping, the barista from the café he went once on a business meeting — absolutely everyone has to know. It’s not like Sangyeon likes to brag, he’s just doing what every proud parent would do, but who are we trying to fool here? Sangyeon loves to brag about his talented baby boys to a point it’s almost obnoxious; not that he minds, of course.

“Good morning.” One his coworkers, Jo Haseul, greets him when she steps into the elevator of their office building the day of the recital. 

“Good morning.” Sangyeon replies with a smile, tilting his head ever so slightly to the side. “Did you know my son was invited to perform at a dance recital by the biggest dance academy in town? Isn’t that amazing?”

Haseul looks at him, puzzled. “Congratulations?”

“Thanks. He’s the best, actually, I’m so happy for him. He deserves this more than anyone, you know? My baby is so talented, I’m glad his hard work is starting to pay off.” Sangyeon says, dreamy eyes and absent minded, right before the elevator stops on his floor. “See you later, Haseul! Don’t forget our briefing today at ten!”

Later that day, Sangyeon clocks out of work at soon as it strikes six and proceeds to pass by the flower shop to pick up the flower bouquet he ordered a few days prior, then drives home to pick up Sunwoo and Youngjae, and then drives to the venue. He makes sure to get seats on the front row for the three of them — Sangyeon feels like he is about to combust; his hands shake in excitement and he feels agitated, restless, in a way. Sangyeon knows he’s probably more nervous than Hyunjun himself, the actual performer, so he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. 

Sunwoo makes him a funny face. “Dad, are you okay?”

“Sure, haha, why wouldn’t I?”

“Nothing. Anyways, we’re going backstage to wish Hyunjun good luck.” Sunwoo says, standing up and pulling Youngjae by the sleeve. “We’ll call you after the recital is over. Bye, dad! See you later!”

Sangyeon is left alone before he can even protest — not that he minds being alone in the crowd; it’s just that this is supposed to be a family event and yet he’s alone with two backpacks on the front row instead of his two boys. The bell rings twice, the lights dim and the auditorium goes quiet short moments before the red velvet curtains graciously spread open and the first performance, 'Swan Lake rendiction (revisited and adapted)' starts.

The lights go out completely. There is a brief moment of silence before the music starts playing and the lights are on once again. Hyunjun is lying on center of the stage, dressed in black from head to toe, barefoot, dark and smokey makeup that accentuate his facial features, especially his eyes. Sangyeon will never not be astounded when seeing Hyunjun perform, gracefully moving on stage, movements so sharp yet so delicate; the way he moves is so natural, like his body flows along with the music. Hyunjun looks ethereal, and Sangyeon couldn’t possibly any more proud, so he gives him a thumbs up when Hyunjun spots him in the crowd. Sangyeon loves the fact Hyunjun spotted him in that huge crowd — what he doesn’t realize, however, that the only reason Hyunjun was able to spot him was because Sangyeon had his flash on while recording the performance on his phone. 

When the performance is over, Hyunjun bows and the crowd goes insane, clapping and whistling, asking for an encore. The lights go out, then on again, and the other performers are there, bowing and waving to the audience as the ending song plays. Sangyeon knows being the closing act is great responsibility, so he claps and whistles as loud as he can.

“You were amazing up there, sweetie.” Sangyeon says, kissing his temple when Hyunjun meets him outside the auditorium. “I’m so proud of you.”

Hyunjun laughs. He picks the bouquet and instantly leans into Sangyeon, wrapping his free arm around his father’s waist. “I could tell.”

Sangyeon frowns. “Hm? What do you mean?”

“You were like, that one parent that never turns off their flash, waving like crazy. Plus, you were whistling and yelling so loud I could hear you even after I got off of stage.”

“It’s true. We were backstage and we could hear you.”

“Did I become that one crazy parent that never turns off the flash? Actually, don’t answer that, I don’t need to know.”


	3. what is love?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon has no idea of how to make Youngjae feel better after having his texts to some boy ignored for two weeks, so burgers, fries and milkshakes sound like the best way to cure said sadness.

Lee Sangyeon prides himself in being a pretty attentive parent — Sangyeon has a sixth and seventh senses that detect any slight change in the behaviour of any of the boys under a second, and an eighth sense that perceives bad days and bad moods like no other. It’s Sunday, late afternoon, so he decides to take the triplets out for dinner on this new sandwich place, American-style diner called Bubu Burgers, that recently opened in their neighbourhood, just around the corner of their apartment complex. Sangyeon doesn’t mean to be nosy and go about prying on the kids, but he can’t help finding out a thing or two by overhearing their conversations. Youngjae is upset about Felix not answering to his text messages for the past two weeks, and Sangyeon has no idea of how to make him feel better, so burgers, fries and milkshakes sound like the best way to cure said sadness.

Bubu Burgers is practically empty by the time they arrive, short minutes of walking from the lobby to the dinner, and they settle for a table in the corner, sliding into the leather seats. Sangyeon sits with Hyunjun, as usual, facing Youngjae and Sunwoo. The waiter hands them the menus, offers them drinks and writes down their orders, rollerskating her way back to the kitchen. The diner exudes every single stereotype Sangyeon had in mind, the walls decorated with neon signs, American flags and mini cars, with loud music playing in the background. 

There’s a vintage TV in the counter behind their table, big, bold and bulky, and some music video is playing too. There are nine girls acting in many different settings that reference to popular culture movies, like The Princess Diaries, Pulp Fiction and La La Land, many of Youngjae’s favorite movies. He recognizes a few of the girls, not all of them, and their group name is forgotten somewhere at the back of Sangyeon’s mind. “Kids, do you know these girls?”

“Oh, yeah. That’s Twice, dad.” Hyunjun says, looking at the screen for a few seconds. “That’s their new song, What Is Love? or something like that.”

“I like it. It’s cool. Makes me wanna dance.”

“Oh my God, dad, no!” Youngjae says when Sangyeon stands up and starts copying the moves. Hyunjun stares in awe, burger in hands, mouth open in shock. Sunwoo drops his burger on the plate and blinks several times in disbelief; there is no possible way Sangyeon is dancing in the middle of a full diner, he is probably hallucinating or something. Hyunjun kicks Sunwoo’s leg under the table to wake him up from his daydream and gives him a look. “Get up, Sunwoo, we have a dad emergency.”

Despite the struggle to get their father to calm down and stop dancing, Hyunjun and Sunwoo manage to drag Sangyeon back to their table. “Please, just sit down.” 

“What? I liked the song. Why are you looking at me like this? I didn’t do anything!”

“Yeah, you didn’t just stand up and dance to Twice out of the blue. Nope, not at all. I’m probably just daydreaming. Hyunjunie, pinch me.” Sunwoo grumbles, face red in embarrassment, looking through the window. “Ouch. You didn’t need to pinch that hard.”

“You literally just asked me to pinch you, my dude. Not my problem if you’re a crybaby when it comes to pain.”

“I’m not a crybaby!” 

“Boys, please, you’re embarrassing me.” Sangyeon sighs. “I need to know something.”

“What?”

_“I wanna know, know, know, know what is love?”_

“Oh my God, dad, stop. Please, just stop.”


	4. boyfriends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon introduces his boyfriend, Haknyeon, to his children.

Lee Sangyeon prides himself in being a pretty straightforward and honest parent, so when his six month anniversary with his secret boyfriend, Ju Haknyeon, is around the corner, Sangyeon concludes it's time to formally introduce Haknyeon to the boys as his boyfriend, not just a friend from work he's been spending an awful amount of time with. This is the first time in Sangyeon History that he's ever gotten far enough in a relationship to introduce his significant other to his children, so he's rightfully nervous about their reaction. They are having dinner at the triplet's favorite restaurant and they're running late already, so when Sunwoo texts him asking about his whereabouts, Sangyeon says they're arriving soon. 

In reality, they're sitting inside Sangyeon's car on the parking lot behind the restaurant; Haknyeon is giving him a pep talk on how it's okay if they don't react well at first and that they'll work their way around it if that's the case. It isn't going to be easy, Sangyeon knows, it never is. Haknyeon plays with his fingers as they delay their entrance as much as they can, staring at him with nothing but love in his eyes. Haknyeon squeezes his hand one last time before telling Sangyeon it's time; things will fall into place, even if eventually, but they will. Everything's going to be fine, Haknyeon says, Sangyeon is just overthinking. He hopes Haknyeon is right.

Sangyeon takes a deep breath and holds Haknyeon's hand tight before walking into the restaurant. The boys are already there, soda cans on the table as they chat, casually flipping through the menu. Sangyeon sits in front of Youngjae and Hyunjun, squished together, and Haknyeon sits facing Sunwoo, smiling politely as he greets them cheerfully. The waiter comes and takes their orders, and when their drinks arrive, Sangyeon decides it's time.

“So, boys, I have something important to tell you.” Sangyeon says, one hand on his cup, the other resting on Haknyeon's lap. “Haknyeon and I are dating. We've been together for six months, and maybe, if time allows, we want to get married in the future.”

“You've gotta be kidding me.” There it is, the response Sangyeon feared the most — not the rejection, the disappointment, but the anger. Sunwoo is _**mad**_ at him. Sangyeon wants to yell at him, ask him why he can't be happy for Sangyeon, why he's so angry about someone that makes him, _his father,_ so happy, but he knows now is not the time, nor the place. “This is your boyfriend? This _kid?_ Where did you find him? _**Outside our high school?**_ ”

“Sunwoo, don't be rude.”

“Have you lost your mind? He's young enough to be our brother.” Sunwoo says, and Sangyeon can feel the anger in his voice, and it _hurts._ “You know what? I'm leaving. Bye.”

“Wait, Sunwoo, don't go, we can—” Haknyeon tries to say, standing up, trying to reach for Sunwoo's arm as he rushes out of the restaurant, but Hyunjun stops him. 

“Leave him be. Sunwoo will come to his senses and apologize on his own time, so in the meantime, let's focus on the happy things, shall we?” Hyunjun says. He smiles, and Sangyeon feels at ease; Hyunjun has always been easier, softer, gentler. “I'm happy for you, dad. I'm happy you finally found someone that makes you happy. I hope you can take good care of him, Haknyeon. We're leaving for college next year and he'll get very lonely without us around, so please make sure to fill up this gap, will you?”

“That's the very least I can do. I'll take care of your old man for you, boys.”

“Excuse you? I'm not old. I'm a young man!”

“Of course, my love, if that's what you want. _You're the youngest._ ” Haknyeon blatantly lies, burying his face on the crook of Sangyeon's neck, laughing against his skin, warmth radiating from his smile and existence alone. Sangyeon wonders how he can be so lucky to have Haknyeon, and thinks about how thankful he is for Hyunjun being so understanding and accepting. Youngjae is softer, clingier, the biggest baby around the house, so Sangyeon is curious about his reaction. If his **baby** will be happy for him as well.

“So, Youngjae, what do you think? Are you okay with us dating?” Sangyeon asks, full of expectation. Youngjae looks away from his phone and… _**Laughs.**_

“Oh, am I supposed to act surprised? If so, oh my God, I had absolutely no idea you two were dating. Wow. Shocking. I could never imagine why Haknyeon would send flowers to someone he considers just a friend with a huge paragraph thanking you for the date.” 

Sangyeon and Haknyeon exchange confused looks. 

“Come on, dad, you're a bad liar. I knew it all along.”

“Did you know too, Hyunjun?”

“Well, yeah. It's not like you were trying too hard to pretend you weren't madly in love with each other, you're constantly flirt in front of us too. Plus, Haknyeon laughs way too much at your dad jokes. He either loves you a lot or has absolutely no sense of humor, so we figured it out.”

_**“What is that supposed to mean?”** _

“We're happy for you, dad, we really are. We hope he can make you as happy as you deserve to be.”


	5. complicated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon goes to Haknyeon for advice and much to his surprise, it works.

Lee Sangyeon prides himself in being a pretty understanding parent, so after the huge fiasco from the week before, Sangyeon figures that the best way to end this cold war is talking things out. Sunwoo is the most mature of the three, accepting and understanding, and Sangyeon knows this isn't his usual behavior; something is off, but Sangyeon can't pinpoint exactly _what_ — that's exactly _why_ they need to talk. Sunwoo has been ignoring him for the whole week, hasn't spoken to or acknowledged Sangyeon's existence since last Friday and has avoided staying in the common areas of their apartment. He eats breakfast and dinner in his room before Sangyeon wakes up and after Sangyeon goes to sleep, catches the bus to school instead of riding with them. It's not only uncomfortable for Sangyeon but for Hyunjun and Youngjae as well, stuck in the middle of the cold war in their own home. 

Sunwoo might think he is some sort of expert in running away from his problems, but Sangyeon knows him. Avoiding Sangyeon or not, Sunwoo still follows the same routine — he has football practice every day until five, except that this week he's been staying out until seven or eight, even. He catches the same bus back home every day, stops for coffee at the same coffee shop every day and orders the same chocolate pastry every day; Sunwoo likes the comfort of his established routine, and Sangyeon takes advantage of that when Sunwoo gets home later that evening.

“Sunwoo.” Sangyeon calls as soon as Sunwoo unlocks the front door. The boy sighs defeated, letting the straps of his backpack slide off his shoulders onto the floor. “Can we talk? Five minutes, please.”

“I'm spending the weekend at uncle Younghoon's, dad, we can talk on Monday.” Sangyeon doesn't like that. He hasn't spoken to Younghoon, Sunwoo's godfather, in months, and knowing that Sunwoo would rather spend the weekend with the man who forgot about his entire existence after his (third) divorce than his own father just makes things worse.

“No, we can’t talk on Monday. _We need to talk_. You can’t just avoid me forever.” Sangyeon insists. “What was that last Friday? Why did you react like that?”

“I don’t wanna talk about this now, dad, can I please just go?”

“I can't let you do that. Why can’t you just talk to me? Is it really that bad that I found someone that makes me happy?”

“I see what you’re doing. This isn’t gonna work.”

“What am I doing?”

“You’re trying to guilt trip me into apologizing. I’m telling you, it isn’t gonna work.”

“Okay. Let’s do this in a different way.” Sangyeon sits down and gestures to Sunwoo to sit beside him on the couch. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what I did wrong, but whatever it is, I’m sorry. Can we please end this Cold War now?” 

Sunwoo blinks. “Why are you apologizing?”

“It doesn't matter who's right and who's wrong, I wanna make things right. I'm tired of fighting, and I'm sure you are too. Come here give your old man a hug, will you?”

Sunwoo breaks down in tears when Sangyeon wraps his arms around him, sobbing against his chest. Sangyeon soothes him, rubbing circles on his back, holding him tight in his embrace. Sunwoo isn't a big crier, tending to bottle his feelings up until he can't take it any longer and just breaks down. “Dad, I'm so sorry. I was so stupid and childish and jealous. I was afraid… he would try to take you away from us. You went through so much to make sure we had everything we ever wanted that I forgot we're not the only people in your life. You're your own person too, not just my father. I should've been happy for you.”

“It's okay, baby. I forgive you.” Sangyeon assures him, wiping his tears away and pressing a kiss to his temple, before pulling Sunwoo back to his arms. Sangyeon knows maybe he's forgiving Sunwoo a little too easily, but seeing his son, his **_baby_** , cry in front of him just makes his heart ache. There's nothing in the world that hurts Sangyeon more than seeing his boys cry. _“I'm not going anywhere.”_

 

(“So you’re telling me I should apologize? I did nothing wrong, babe.” Sangyeon whines. He's out for lunch with Haknyeon in a restaurant nearby their office, Haknyeon's treat, and they were talking about non-office related things, so the topic naturally came up. Haknyeon felt like it was his fault that things didn't go as planned with the boys, especially with Sunwoo, and has been trying to come up with some miraculous strategy to fix things, but it goes deeper than just Sunwoo not liking Haknyeon based on a 3-second interaction.

“You're acting like a child. It doesn't matter who's right or wrong when this is tearing you apart. Just talk to him when you get home today, will you? _For me._ ”

“How can you be so sure this is going to work?” 

“From all I've heard about Sunwoo, he's a smart boy. He knows he has to make up with you.”

“This isn't fair. How am I the parent yet I'm taking advice from you, of all people?”

“Trust me on this one. It'll work.”

“What if it doesn't?”

“Well, if it doesn't work, I'll take you out on a date. And if it does, you take me out on a date. Do we have a deal?”

 _“Deal.”_ )


	6. g(old)en days

“Dad, is there any chance we can have uncle Younghoon, uncle Jaehyun and uncle Juyeon over for lunch on Sunday?” Youngjae asks, strategically soft, as he carefully rests his chin on Sangyeon's shoulder, big brown eyes staring at him. Sangyeon sighs, defeated; Youngjae has been tiptoeing around the topic for a few days now, working his way around the sensitive topic that is the boys' godparents. Youngjae is too smart sometimes. Today is their 18th birthday; they're out for dinner at this barbecue place they can't afford to go on normal days, but today is a special day, so they can. He waited the entire week to ask this question so that Sangyeon wouldn't be able to refuse, because it's their birthday and Sangyeon has made a promise to never say 'no' to their requests and wishes during said day.

“I don't think that's a good idea, baby.” Sangyeon says with a tired sigh. “Younghoon and I aren’t exactly in good terms right now.”

 _“Hmmpfh.”_ Sunwoo mumbles, mouth stuffed with beef. Hyunjun hits him with his elbow with a disgusted look on his face. “Wait, you two fought?”

“Well, Younghoon fought with pretty much everyone around him, not just me. He isn’t talking to Jaehyun or Juyeon either.”

“I thought they were best friends?” 

“Technically, they are, but Younghoon fucked up.” Sangyeon explains, taking a sip from his beer. “Younghoon married every single one of Juyeon's best friends to break their hearts. Dating is one thing, but getting married to three different men in the span of fifteen years? That's too much. Plus, I don't think Jaehyun is really looking forward to seeing his ex-husband now that he married Changmin.”

“Uncle Changmin dated uncle Younghoon too?” Hyunjun asks. They remember being there for the surprise engagement party to see Changmin and Jaehyun propose to each other at the same time, and attending their wedding too. “That's insane.” 

“Changmin and Younghoon were married for what, 5 years? And then Younghoon went and married Chanhee three months after, but they got divorced a few weeks ago. Now he's seeing Kevin Moon, that artist guy. I'm really not looking forward to attending yet another wedding, but well. Guess I will.” 

“I don't get it. You're going to his wedding? Even though you aren't in good terms?” 

“Younghoon is my best friend. I've been to every single one of his weddings, and I was best man in every one of them. I don't agree with his lifestyle, and even though we haven't been in good terms for a while, he's one of my oldest friends. He was there for me when no one else was. I kind of owe him, in a way.” 

“You never actually told us how you met them, dad.” Youngjae pipes in, to which Sunwoo adds, “It's true! Why don't you tell us some funny stories about you?” 

“We lived in the same neighbourhood, went to the same school, all that, so we grew up together, even went to the same university after we graduated high school. To be honest, I don't remember many funny stories from when I was younger. It's kind of sad, but it feels like my life only really started after I had you.” Sangyeon confesses, aware that that isn't something he should feel ashamed of. Hyunjun coos at him, doing that thing he does where he scrunches up his nose and pouts.“You probably don't know this, but when you were born, your mother and I were only expecting one child. Just one baby, not three. So when we saw the three of you, she decided she didn't want to be a mother, Younghoon, Jaehyun and Juyeon were the ones who helped me raise you. For a good while, actually, because you were born right after I graduated university and I had nowhere else to go. I was so young, and so, so scared I wouldn't be able to take care of you.” 

There's a long moment of silence — it isn't awkward or tense, it's just _silence_. There's a lot for them to digest; those are the unpretty stories of rough times when they were younger, the ones that Sangyeon never told them until now that they are mature enough to understand that the hardships he went through were, by any means, their fault. Sangyeon went through a lot as a single parent fresh out of university with no perspective of job that would allow him to work and be a parent at the same time; Sangyeon sacrificed a lot for them, for their family, but he doesn't regret anything. Sangyeon wouldn't have it any other way.

“You know, Youngjae, getting you to sleep was the hardest thing ever. You'd be crying in my arms for hours, and then Jaehyun would hold you and you'd immediately stop crying. Hyunjun was the opposite. Every time Jaehyun held you, you'd start crying because you wanted to be with me. Sunwoo didn't have that. I'd just get home and he'd be asleep on top of Younghoon's stomach, or with Juyeon.” Sangyeon doesn't know how he was born with such luck, to have three best friends that willingly helped him raise his children and have them dote on his kids almost as much as he does. “Oh, Juyeon. I remember he cried the most when he first held you. He would look at you nestled in his arms, then look at me, and go, _Is it okay if I hold them for this long?_ And then started crying again. Something about Hyunjun having my nose, which was a blatant lie. Babies either look like Yoda or mushy knees, there's no in between.” 

“Hey, you can't say that!” Youngjae protests, fists on the table, nudging him playfully. “How did you even differentiate us, if we looked like Yoda?”

“Of course I can. I saw you when you were babies, and you did look like mushy knees. Juyeon came up with this great idea of color coding you. Hyunjun was white, Sunwoo was blue and Youngjae was pink. It worked like a charm, if I might add. Ever wondered why you were always wearing the same colors in your baby pictures? That’s why.” 

“Dad, _why are you crying?_ ”

“You’re growing up too fast. I don’t want you to grow up.” Sangyeon can’t help it. There he is, crying his eyes out in the middle of a barbecue restaurant because he loves his sons too much and the realization that they’re becoming their own person, with their own dreams and aspirations hits him hard. In front of him, he sees three young men, so different, so unique and talented in their own ways, that grew from being small and clingy boys, sneaking into his room to sleep in his bed when they had nightmares to being too cool for him. He sees his entire world in front of him, and can’t help but cry. Sangyeon knows that’s how it works, that he can’t protect them forever, as much as he wants to, because they need to grow up and the time for that is now. “You know, I remember when I first held you in my arms. You were so small, so tiny. Now I can barely hug the three of you at the same time because you’re so tall and—”

“Dad, it’s okay. Don’t worry about that. No matter how big or grown up we are, we’ll always be your boys.” Youngjae promises. _“Your powerpuff boys.”_


	7. heart attack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon goes on a week-long trip to meet Haknyeon's parents and leaves the three goofs, Younghoon, Jaehyun and Juyeon in charge. Things get a little out of hand really quickly.

Lee Sangyeon prides himself in being an overly attentive parent, so of course that when he goes for a honeymoon-like week with Haknyeon and his family to Jeju, he wants to make sure the boys will be well taken care of while he's away. 

Sangyeon puts Jaehyun as first in command, for being the most responsible out of the three goofs his children call godparents and the only one who can impose some respect to Sangyeon's authority as a parent. Juyeon comes in second place, only because he dotes way too much on the boys and tends to do whatever they want. A huge softie, really. 

And Younghoon, well, is more of a symbolic help than anything. Sangyeon isn't expecting much from him at this point, despite being in speaking (not good _**good**_ ) terms, so he assigns him the easiest task: driving them to school in the morning. Juyeon picks them up from school, drives them home and sometimes stays around for dinner, and Jaehyun and Changmin come over for dinner and to ensure the boys go to bed in time to get a decent amount of sleep.

“Listen, Sangyeon, you’re stressing too much. The boys are doing just fine! Hey, Sunwoo, come here, tell Sangyeon everything’s fine!” Jaehyun says on the phone, trying to tranquilize him. There’s some grunting on the background, some muffled complaints, but Sunwoo picks it up shortly after. “We haven’t eaten in three days, we ran out of toothpaste, and Youngjae, Hyunjun and I are dropping out of school! Love you, dad, hope you’re having a great time with Haknyeon, bye!”

Sangyeon blinks in confusion. “Jaehyun, what’s going on? Is that true? Are they dropping out of school? They really haven’t eaten in days? _Dear Lord—_ ”

“Oh my God, Sangyeon, no, of course not! I got everything under control!” Jaehyun says, laughing nervously. “Wait, let me get Hyunjun on the phone with you. Hyundyunie, come here, talk to your father. Tell him things are fine. The house isn't on fire or anything. You're still in school. All that. _Please._ ”

“Hey, dad, it's me, your favorite son. Everything's fine, don't worry, we're not dropping out of school or anything. Sunwoo is just messing with you.” Hyunjun states monotonously. “How's the trip? Are the lovebirds having a good time?”

“Dear God, will you stop that? We're not a couple of horny teenagers for fuck's sake. Will you pass the phone to Youngjae, please? I wanna see how he's doing.”

_“Technically, you won't be seeing anything because this is a phone call so—”_

“Just pass him the phone, oh my God.”

There is some more talking, some sort of muted discussion going on, and eventually Youngjae picks up the phone. “Hi, dad! How's Jeju?”

An audible bark.

_“What was that?”_

“Sunwoo is sick. He just sneezed.” Youngjae lies.

Another bark. “Was that a dog?”

“No, dad, it's just Sunwoo, he's sneezing a lot, now if you don't mind—” 

“There's no way in hell that was Sunwoo. Are you guys really at home? I wanna talk to Changmin, is he there?”

“No, dad, Changmin is busy—” Youngjae says, trying to talking himself out of the situation, and Sangyeon can hear Changmin softly whispering on the other side of the line. “Is that Sangyeon?”

“Get Changmin on the phone. _**Now.**_ ”

“Hey, hyung! What's up?” Changmin says cheerfully. “We got puppies! Isn't it great?”

“Puppies?”

“Yes, puppies! Youngjae has been asking for one for so long, we thought we just might check out a shelter and see what our options are. We were very lucky to find these two puppies. Youngjae really liked them, so we decided to take them home with us! Didn't the boys send you some pictures? _They're adorable!_ ”

“Two puppies? Oh my dear God, I'm gonna faint.”

“Hyung? Are you there?” Changmin calls. _**“Oh my God, kids, I think we killed him.”**_


	8. baby on board

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon tries to scold Jaehyun and Changmin for spoiling the triplets too much, only to find out very soon, there will be a baby on board.

“You really disappointed me. Spoiling them is one thing, but getting them puppies while I’m away? Come on, Jaehyun, did you really think you could get away with this? That I would come home and simply not see two puppies walking around?” Sangyeon says the moment he gets the entire family (including the godparents and their plus ones) reunited in their apartment’s kitchen. Jaehyun is a grown ass man, Sangyeon reminds himself; he doesn't need scolding to know he's fucked up. “And you, Changmin, I trusted you! You're supposed to be the pull to Jaehyun's push, not the push to his push even harder.”

“And you, three little goblins, how could you do this?” He asks, turning to his children, hiding behind Jaehyun and Juyeon. “What am I gonna do with you?”

“It was my idea.” Changmin pipes in. “I took them to the shelter. Youngjae has been talking about wanting one for months, but he was too scared to ask you to go check out some shelters with him, so he came to us. We didn’t mean any harm when we took the puppies in, hyung.”

“I know you didn't mean no harm, but now we have two puppies we can't keep and I honestly don't know what to do.” Sangyeon sighs. He looks at the puppies, Walnut and Peanut, as the triplets named them, playing around with someone's lost sock, and then tugging at the hem of his pants with their little puppy teeth, asking for his attention. Sangyeon feels really tempted to give in and lay down on the floor with them, because Walnut and Peanut are truly adorable. “We need to give them back.”

“No, we can’t give them back!” Youngjae protests, Almond and Peanut cradled in his arms now. “Come on, dad, we can take care of them. We can divide tasks, we'll all look after the puppies, look, we'll be good parents. Please. We can't just give them back. They're gonna miss us!”

“Sunwoo is scared of dogs. Nice try.”

“Please, hyung. Don't give them back.” Changmin pleas, bright round eyes that always get him what he wants. That's how he got both Younghoon and Jaehyun to fall in love with him in a matter of days; Changmin uses his charms so much it just doesn't work on Sangyeon anymore. 

“So you take care of them.”

“There's no way for us to take two puppies in, not now that we're moving, and the baby is due in a few weeks too, so really. I wish we could, but with the baby coming, we won't have time for both the baby and two pups.”

_“Baby? What baby?”_

“We were in line for adoption ever since we started dating, but we only got a call a couple weeks ago. It's a baby girl.” Jaehyun explains, voice immediately soft, as he fetches his wallet from his back pocket and pulls out a picture. A 3D ultrasound of this small, delicate little bean, picture so blurry Sangyeon can't even distinguish her features, but just the memory of when he held Hyunjun's first ultrasound makes his heart melt in his chest. Sangyeon blinks a few times. Jaehyun is going to have a baby. Jaehyun is going to be a father. Sangyeon can't even believe it. “We met up with the mother last week and she seemed to really like us. Guess we're having a baby, my good dudes.”

“Oh my God, Jaehyun, that's amazing news. I'm so happy for you.” Sangyeon begins, holding back his tears, as he holds Jaehyun's face in between his hands and stares deep into his eyes. That's his best friend right there, the man he grew up with, the second father of his own kids, who's now going to have a baby of his own. Sangyeon feels so happy for him, for Changmin, _for them_ and that little girl that's coming their way. They deserve it so much. “Congratulations to both of you. You're going to be great parents.”

Sangyeon doesn't know exactly when he started crying, but before he realizes, he is sobbing against Jaehyun's shoulder because he is so happy for him, for them, and for being able to be around for this next big step of their lives. Jaehyun deserves this _so much_ , this unending happiness that comes along with becoming a parent, this endless joy that is being a parent; Jaehyun deserves all the happiness in the world and so much more. Sangyeon knows he's going to be an amazing parent, having picked up a lot of experience after years and years of being the triplets' second father, and so is Changmin. 

There's a lot of crying, a lot of runny noses and puffy eyes. He remembers this same day 19 years ago when he told them about the pregnancy, he remembers how Juyeon crumbled down into this puddle of tears the moment Sangyeon announced it, how Jaehyun cupped his face and told him was going to be the world's best father ever, how Younghoon silently sat with him on his driveway and let him cry out all his fears and insecurities, and how thankful he is to still have the same three men with him after all those years. _That's what friends are for,_ Sangyeon tells himself. And the same way Younghoon, Jaehyun and Juyeon were there for him to help with whatever he needed when the triplets were born, he knows that Younghoon and Jaehyun will eventually put their differences aside and let themselves back onto each other's lives. Younghoon is a sucker for kids, and an even bigger sucker for his best friends. Things will be alright. It might take some things, but things slowly (and surely) will fall back into place.

 

“So we're keeping the puppies, right?” Youngjae says after a while, as he bats his long eyelashes at him, pouting. Walnut and Peanut climb onto his lap, sniffing him, his pants, before pressing their little paws onto Sangyeon's chest and Sangyeon can't just say no. _“Pretty please.”_

“You're the worst.”

_“Is that a yes?”_

_**“Yes.”** _


	9. tight bond

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What? Don’t look at me like that, I’m right and you know it. Also, Kevin, if he ever does anything to, give us a call. We’ll kick his ass.”
> 
> “What ass?”
> 
> “Oh, no, not you too! Come on, Juyeon, I thought you were on my side!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> inspired by the stories my father told me about him and my godfather, him and my sister's godfather, my little take on adult friendships and how it's okay to be upset at your friends regardless of how long they've been your friends and everything they might have done for/with you. you don't have to forgive them if you don't want to. also, warning for dick jokes and mild swearing? let me know if i should change the rating, i'm still clueless on to how ao3 ratings work ~
> 
> oh, and in case you were wondering... younghoon was married first to jaehyun, then to changmin, and then to chanhee and now he's dating kevin. and if you pay attention, you'll notice that jaehyun married the man younghoon left him for. 
> 
> oh, yeah, forgot to mention but: everyone's gay. miss me with the hetero bullshit, my good dudes, not on my watch. or my fics. anyways! shout out to @rome_in_asia for their galaxy brain ideas they left on the comments. happy reading ♡

“Okay, so. Now that we’re all here, it’s time for us to open up and talk.” Sangyeon says quietly, as the seven of them sit around the dinner table in the kitchen, Walnut and Peanut both asleep on his lap now. The triplets are, supposedly, already in bed, getting some sleep before a new week of school starts. It’s the first time since Younghoon and Chanhee’s divorce that Sangyeon manages to get all of them in one room without them being at each other’s throats, which he considers a huge achievement. Sangyeon is sitting in the middle of Juyeon and Changmin, followed by Jaehyun, Kevin, Younghoon and Jacob, Juyeon’s new boyfriend. Things are awkward, to say the least, so Sangyeon has to fake cough and get the whole family therapy session started himself. Sangyeon wishes Haknyeon would be there, just for moral support; he could really use Haknyeon’s good energy right now.

“I wanna go first. Younghoon, I don’t agree with the way you deal with things, how you fast forward every single one of your relationships onto marriage in the span of months, or how you simply forgot about Sunwoo’s existence ever since you started seeing Kevin. I’m by no means saying this is Kevin’s fault, but Sunwoo is your godson. He looks up to you the same way he looks up to me, or even more. This is the example of love you’re setting for him. Someone who he’s put in a pedestal his whole life forgetting about him after falling in love.”

“I’m sorry.” Younghoon mutters under his breath, Kevin squeezing his palm under the table ever so slightly to assure him it’s okay. Sangyeon wants to say it isn’t okay, that being sorry won’t solve things, that he’s done forgiving him, but Sangyeon knows that fighting won’t make things any better, or any easier. “I know how much trust you put into me to name me his godfather. I fucked up, and I’m sorry.”

“You need to own up to your mistakes. Saying that you’re sorry won’t resolve things.” Jaehyun points out, and Sangyeon is really glad Jaehyun is the one to say it. “If you’re really sorry, then act like so and do something about it. Sulking over being a shitty parental figure won’t help instead you actually do something to change that.”

“Putting in that way makes me seem like a shitty person.”

“Which you are.” Changmin adds. Juyeon bites his lips and muffles the laugh that threatens to escape his lips, covering his mouth with his hand. It went from being a serious conversation to slandering Younghoon hours, and they’re laughing and giggling. Sangyeon likes it better when they’re laughing. “What? Don’t look at me like that, I’m right and you know it. Also, Kevin, if he ever does anything to, give us a call. We’ll kick his ass.”

“What ass?” Juyeon asks, and now Jaehyun laughs openly. 

“Oh, no, not you too! Come on, Juyeon, I thought you were on my side!” 

“Me? On your side? After you married each one of my best friends only to break their hearts later? No, thank you.” 

“I never married Sangyeon-hyung.” 

“Well, lucky for him. Sangyeon-hyung is the only one with fucking taste in this house.” 

“You and I were never married either.” 

“Thank fucking God. Otherwise we’d end up like you and Jaehyun, fighting over Changmin’s dick.” Jacob is laughing so much he’s tearing up, and Juyeon wipes away his fake tears before shooting Jaehyun and Younghoon a look. “What? You two did fight over dick.”

“Are we really gonna go there? Okay, fine, I didn’t wanna do this, but you fought over dick too.” Jaehyun remembers. Juyeon looks at him, clueless as always. Sangyeon laughs at how selective Juyeon’s memory seems to be. “At some point, everyone in this room has sucked Younghoon’s dick. I speak based on facts and facts only, I have tons of scientific research on this. Who here has never sucked his dick in their life?” 

Juyeon is the only one to raise his hand. “I never sucked his dick, though?”

“Uh-huh. Tell yourself that, champ. Your first blowjob ever was blowing Younghoon’s dick.”

“Oh my, I remember that.” Sangyeon adds with a smirk. “You came out to us after that, do you remember that? His dick was that good, huh?”

“I didn’t need to know that.” Kevin whines, hiding himself behind Younghoon’s broad frame in embarrassment. “Come on, guys, that’s too much information.” 

“You’re part of the family now, Kevin.” Juyeon states, raising his half-empty glass of water to propose a toast. “A toast. To new family members. That our bond may only grow tighter and stronger.”

“Wait, shouldn’t we get the boys too?”

“Let them sleep. It’s late. The babies need to sleep.” 

“Oh, yes, and what about your baby boyfriend! Where is he?” 

“Haknyeon. His name is Haknyeon. And he is in Jeju with his family, by the way.” 

“Aw, your baby boyfriend is still living with his family? How cute.”  


“He’s 30, Jaehyun. Not 15.” 

“Damn, he must really miss his grandfather to be dating an old man like you now.” 

“I’m literally a year older than you? Not even that. Why am I the grandpa when you’re all a bunch of old hags? Except Jacob, of course. He’s an angel and we’re thrilled to have him here.” 

“Jacob is actually older than both me and Younghoon—” 

_**“Did I stutter?”** _


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hyunjun claims Sangyeon doesn't understand how fashion works. Sangyeon calls it bullshit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and now we're back to our regular schedule. special thanks to my one and only mar (@dreamyyeon) for this prompt! the triplets all have boyfriends. hyunjun's boyfriend is the first one to show up. any guesses on who he is? i've mentioned eric's boyfriend a couple of times before, it shouldn't be a surprise for you. i'll give a kiss to whoever guesses sunwoo's boyfriend! happy reading ♡

It’s Friday night — Youngjae is out for a night in town with his friends, Sunwoo is sleeping over at his boyfriend’s house, and Hyunjun has a date with some boy from his class, some Choi Bomin or whatever, that is going to pick him up in his car and everything; Sangyeon doubts the car is really his, and that he has a real license. Sangyeon, however, has no time to worry; Haknyeon is going to be there at any given second, and he still hasn’t managed to fix that ridiculous tie around his neck.

“Dad, Bomin is here!” Hyunjun says from the kitchen, before walking towards Sangyeon’s room to kiss him goodbye. Sangyeon is standing in front of the mirror, twisting the tie under the collar, and he watches Hyunjun’s reflex in discontent. Hyunjun is wearing nothing but a see-through black button up shirt, white pants, thick studded leather belt around his waist and some bold earrings. “Please don’t forget to take the key from the lock otherwise I’ll be locked outside. Gotta go now. Love you, dad, have a nice time with Haknyeon!”

“And where do you think you’re going dressed like that, young man?”

“Oh my God, dad, it’s fashion.” Hyunjun protests. “Get with the times!”

“You barely have a shirt on.” 

“Excuse you? It’s bold and bash.” 

“It belongs in the trash.” Sangyeon points out. “Everything is fine except that shirt. Go put something that doesn’t show your nipples on, please, it’s freezing cold outside. And don’t forget to grab a jacket too! We have a family lunch on dinner, I don’t want you to get sick!”

“Ugh, fine.” Hyunjun complains before leaving for his room. He comes back shortly after with a new outfit, now wearing a button down black shirt topped with a patterned jacket. “Bomin is waiting outside, can I go now? Is this outfit dad approved?” 

“Yes. You may go now. Give me a kiss and get out the door, you’re probably late by now.” Sangyeon demands, still staring at his own reflection on the mirror. Hyunjun hugs him from the back, resting his chin on his shoulder before kissing him on the cheek. He takes a step back and laughs, before motioning to Sangyeon to turn around and face him. Hyunjun losens up the tie, flattens out the fabric under his palms and makes the perfect Windsor knot in a matter of seconds. 

He kisses Sangyeon goodbye another time. “Okay. You’re all done now. Have fun, dad!” 

“You too, baby, you too...”


	11. astrology

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venus is in retrograde. For some reason, Hyunjun thinks that's a good reason for him to be late. Sangyeon doesn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 100 kudos... do you mind if i just... sit here and cry..... really, thank you so much for all the love and support powerpuff boys has gotten these last few weeks. it makes everything totally worth it. thank you for taking part in this journey of unplanned and unorganized events, messy update schedules and the most random ideas ever. i'm really thankful for the amazing feedback you've given me, and for all the love and even lovelier comments that help me get through bad and rough days. you really know how to cheer me up, i can just hope ppb can get you to cheer up too! thank you so much ♡♡♡

“Hyunjun, come out, we’re almost late!”

“Venus is in retrograde, I’m physically unable to!” Hyunjun responds from his room. “You know what happens during retrograde season, dad! You shouldn’t expect me to be on time!”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Sangyeon whispers to Sunwoo, sitting on the couch besides him. Sunwoo shrugs, clueless, as he mindlessly zaps through the TV channels in the hopes of finding something interesting to watch while Hyunjun takes other three hours to get ready. “Something about the planets and how they move and how the way they move affects us? Some shit like that. I’m sure Hyunjun can give you an hour long lecture on it.”

“I’ll have to pass that one, but thanks.” Sangyeon sighs, frustrated. “Since when is he into those things, anyways?”

“Honestly? I don’t know. I remember him calling Bomin one day and telling him they needed to break up because their signs weren’t so compatible when it came to trust. Seriously. That’s the biggest bullshit I’ve ever heard.”

“Wait, they broke up?”

“No, of course not. Hyunjun loves Bomin too much to actually break up with him. I’m glad Bomin can talk some sense into that mind of his sometimes, because Youngjae and I already gave up.”

“I cannot believe he’s becoming one of those teenage girls obsessed with horoscope and zodiac.”

“Dad, that’s sexist. Please take it back.”

“What? Why? Isn’t it true, though?”

“Maybe it is, but you can’t just say that. It’s not an only girls thing. Boys like horoscope and zodiac too. Hyunjun is one of them. Donghyuck, my friend from school, is also one of them. You see? It’s not a gender or age specific thing. People just happen to find them really interesting, the same way I like talking about football, and Youngjae talks about, I don’t know, Rubik’s Cubes or whatever.”

“Isn’t that Donghyuck boy your boyfriend?”

“Is that really all you got from what I said? Come on, dad, I wanna help you become a better person that doesn’t believe in gender roles or reinforces outdated gender stereotypes! You’ve gotta help me help you, though.”

“Shouldn’t I be the one educating you?”

“You’re a good father, dad, but there are things that you can’t exactly teach me, and there are also things you don’t really know. Those I’ll be the one to teach you. We can learn from each other and grow from that.” Sunwoo says. He smiles fondly at Sangyeon before standing up, dusting the front of his pants and yelling, “Hyunjun, we’re already late. Come out now or we’ll leave for uncle Chanhee’s without you!”

With that, Hyunjun shows up in a blink, all dressed up in a black fur coat paired up with a white button down shirt tucked into black denim. “I’m gay! And ready. Both, actually. Gay and ready.”

“Just get in the elevator, dear Lord. We're already so late.”


	12. swimming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Dad, who’s your favorite son?”
> 
> “I don’t have a favorite son. I love you all equally.”
> 
> “Yeah, but if Sunwoo, Youngjae and I were drowning, you’d save me, right?” 
> 
>  
> 
> “You can all learn how to swim.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i've been waiting since JUNE to post this, you guys have no idea of how thrilled i am with being able to finally post this gem. now, a few months later, we're halfway through ppb and i finally get to post this, i'm so excited!! this was the first summary i came up with back in june when i still wanted to upload this with a chronology of events and actually show sangyeon and the triplets growing up, i wanted to go from age to age, and every chapter would be a different year... that was a good idea but i like how it's now better. i might do that another day. maybe for nano? who knows. anyways! a little surprise for you, any guesses? hehe ♡
> 
> for my brazilian deobis: que deus tenha piedade de nós, porque as eleições não vão ter. tomem cuidado ao voltarem para casa, fiquem atentos e seguros acima de tudo. sintam-se à vontade pra desabafar sobre isso nos comentários ou sei lá, isso tudo também tá me deixando muito mal. se cuidem, mei-mei ama vocês ♡

“Dad, who’s your favorite son?” Hyunjun asks innocently, batting his long eyelashes at Sangyeon. They’re sitting around Choi Chanhee’s apartment private pool, sunglasses on and shirts off, lazing on the loungers spread out across the marbled deck. 

Chanhee is a long term friend of theirs, who Sangyeon met through Juyeon while they were still university students; Chanhee had just started his double major in business and economics, and Sangyeon was already on his fifth semester when they met. Time went by, and Chanhee escalated from an intern at this multinational company to manager, head of the financial department, later leaving and starting his own company. Sangyeon has heard many stories about him and his long list of ex-boyfriends, kind of similar to Younghoon in a way; that’s why they managed to stay friends after their divorce, Sangyeon guesses. 

Chanhee recently announced that he and Younghoon were back together, and that they were both madly in love with Kevin, so today’s barbecue party is a celebration of their getting-back-and-moving-in-together situation. Sangyeon doesn’t quite understand how it works, but when he sees the way Younghoon looks at them, heart eyes and that huge loving smile on his face, Sangyeon is just happy it works, one way or another.

Today, they celebrate to their engagement with loads of food, drinks and laughs. Chanhee has always been a party person, host of many during their time in college, and so is Younghoon, lover of the fun and glamour. Kevin isn’t exactly a party person like the other two from what Sangyeon knows about him, but he seems the happiest Sangyeon has ever seen, flipping burgers and steaks alongside Chanhee and Juyeon. Changmin and Jaehyun are busy swooning over their baby daughter, now laughing in Jacob’s arms, big toothless smiles for everyone around her.

“I don’t have a favorite son.” Sangyeon answers, successfully avoiding the question. Those are possibly the worst questions any son could ever ask their parents, tricky little goblins with their tricky little questions that (almost) get him to admit that he has a favorite son. There’s nothing wrong with having a favorite son, Sangyeon thinks, because at the end of the day, he loves all three of them with his whole body and soul. Sangyeon is a tiny bit biased, however. Don’t tell them, though. “I love you all equally.”

“Yeah, but if Sunwoo, Youngjae and I were drowning, you’d save me, right?” Fucking brat. He knows. He fucking knows, and is loving to rub the fact that he knows on Sangyeon’s face.

“You can all learn how to swim.” Sangyeon replies, dodging from the question yet again, especially now that Sunwoo and Youngjae are staring at him too, big round eyes shining with curiosity. “I didn't pay for all three of you to go to have swimming for me to do the saving, no sir.”

“You were supposed to say I’m your favorite son!” Hyunjun cries, pouting, lacing his arms around Sangyeon. “We all know I’m the favorite.”

“Says who?” Sunwoo questions, frowning. “I don't get it. You’re not special.”

“Actually, I know who’s Sangyeon’s favorite.” Younghoon says, tapping Sangyeon’s shoulder. He hands him a can of beer and sits besides him.

“Who? Me, right?” Youngjae asks, pointing at his own chin.

“You don’t look like Ju Haknyeon to me.” 

“Seriously, dad? Haknyeon?” Sunwoo asks.

“Is that what I think it is? You’re jealous? Of Haknyeon, of all people?”

“Hey, I heard that!” Haknyeon yells from the kitchen, putting his head outside the window, to which Sangyeon replies, “Honey, be quiet!”

“Aw, come here, you big baby.” Sangyeon coos, pulling Sunwoo to his arms and planting kisses all over his face. “You don’t have to jealous of Haknyeon, don’t worry. You’ll always be my favorite.”

“Sunwoo is your favorite?” Youngjae asks in disbelief. 

“You’re all my favorite. Now come here and give me a big kiss, you big babies.”


	13. troublemakers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon receives a call from the school principal announcing Sunwoo and Hyunjun have been suspended and almost loses it, until he understands why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> remember how i said things were going downhill? murphy just told me to stop crying like a little bitch because hitler and trump's love child is about to win the elections. the b in brazil now stands for bitch we're so fucked because biiiiiitch, we're so fucked it's almost unreal. i already cried so much this past weekend and today when i woke up too, at least here i can pretend things are okay. anyways. i'd say happy reading but there's nothing happy about today, i'm sorry :(
> 
> special thanks to [yuehua](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yuehua/profile) for this lovely prompt ♡

“So. Does anyone of you care enough to explain what’s going on?”

Hyunjun and Sunwoo exchange glares, shaking their heads.

Sunwoo has a black eye, a bag of frozen peas stolen from the cantine’s freezer wrapped with a towel on top of it, and a busted lip, arms crossed across his chest, impatiently tapping his foot on the floor. Hyunjun stuffed his nostrils with tissues, leaning back on the seat, as he rests a bag of frozen berries on his broken nose; he has a bruise on his cheek too, blood dripping from his mouth. It ain’t pretty, Sangyeon has to admit, as he inspects the boys’ faces and whistles. _Phew._ Getting these two to talk will be complicated, to say the least.

“What is up with the two of you?” Sangyeon asks, sitting down in the middle of them, concern in his voice. “What happened?” 

The two boys exchange glares and come to a silent agreement. “Nothing, dad.”

“Then why I got a call from your principal saying you two are in serious trouble?” 

“You should go in and find out for yourself, dad. There’s not much we can say.”

Sangyeon sighs, stands up and walks towards the principal’s office, Hyunjun and Sunwoo walking right behind him. Lee Taeyong, the principal, is there, already waiting for them.

“Oh, Mr. Lee! Thank you so much for coming.” The principal says, shaking his hand as he shows Sangyeon his appropriate seat. “I’m sure you’re a very busy man, so I’ll go straight to the point. Hyunjun and Sunwoo got in a fight with one of their classmates earlier today, and it was bad to the point the boy had to be sent to the hospital during lunch hour. We decided to suspend them for a week due to their poor behavior in school grounds.”

“Wait. What? Are you telling me that Hyunjun and Sunwoo, my precious little angels, beat up one of their classmates? There must be a reason for that. What’s the whole story, Mr. Principal?”

“Said boy was supposedly bullying your other son, Mr. Lee.” _**Youngjae. Oh.**_

“I’m sorry, is that supposed to be a problem?” Sangyeon laughs in disbelief. “You can bet your ass I raised some fucking legends. But let me get this straight. You’re suspending them for standing up for their brother instead of taking action against the bullying that goes on inside your school. Am I correct?”

“Hyunjun and Sunwoo are in real trouble, Mr. Lee, I don’t think you’re understanding how bad the situation is.” The principal argues, nervously fidgeting with the thin frame of his glasses. Sangyeon clicks his tongue. “They’re on the verge of being expelled. For them to be able to continue attending our school, the boys would have to apologize for what they’ve done, followed by a term or more of after school detention, depending on how they behave on the next months.”

“Oh, so you want them to apologize to someone that was harassing their brother? I’m sorry, Mr. Principal, but that won’t happen. They won’t apologize for standing up for Youngjae, because they’re not the wrong ones in this story. And well, if they really are on the verge of being expelled, please let me know now. I’m pretty sure I can find a school way better than yours that won’t favor bullies.”

“Mr. Lee, please, listen—”

“No, _you listen._ You’re lucky Sunwoo and Hyunjun were stupid enough to beat that kid inside school grounds, because if it was me, I’d fucking floor him myself as soon as he steps out of this school. Lucky me, I guess, for having so many connections inside the police department that would make sure this little incident would go totally unnoticed.” A huge lie followed by a huge lie, and then by another huge lie. Sangyeon has never raised and never will raise his hand upon his children, nor would at anyone, for that matter, and has never used violence as a way to impose his authority as a parent. Violence isn’t the answer. This, however, it’s different; it’s just a bunch of empty threats. That work, regardless. “Or you know. I could sue your school for negligence, win the case and taint your school’s reputation forever. But I’m sure you wouldn’t want that, right, Mr. Lee Taeyong?”

“Of course not. I’m sure we can work our way around this situation.”

“I believe we’re done here. I appreciate the effort you’ve put into this, but as you’ve mentioned before, I am indeed a very busy man. We’re leaving now. Please fax their expulsion letter to my office later, will you? Thank you for your time. Goodbye.”

Sangyeon storms out of the principal’s office, urging Hyunjun and Sunwoo to grab their things and get going before Sangyeon busts into laughter right there and then. He surely deserves an Oscar for that performance, threatening the principal and everything. It’s only when they’re safe in the comfort of Sangyeon’s car that the three finally start laughing.

“ _’You can bet your ass I raised some legends’?_ Dad? What happened to you?” Hyunjun asks, wiping away his tears as he laughs with his whole body from Sangyeon’s performance. “I didn’t know you were such a good actor. I would never imagine that you’d threaten our school’s principal and say you’d _fucking floor the boy_ yourself. I swear I almost lost it. I couldn’t tell if you were joking or not.” 

“If I didn’t know you better, I’d be so fucking scared. God, Principal Lee looked like he was about to pee his pants the whole time, especially when you mentioned the lawsuit.”

“Now that I think about what I said, I shouldn’t have gone that hard on him. But I did enjoy the scared look on his face.” Sangyeon laughs, burying his face on the steering wheel. “We should go on a shopping spree tomorrow.”

“What?”

“You’re changing schools next Monday. We need to get you all new uniforms.”

“You’re actually going to move us to another school? You’re a fucking legend. I thought that was a joke.”

“It was until I realized Chanhee bought this school last year. I’m pretty sure he’ll get you a spot there, and enroll you in the middle of the year without any fees.”

“Can he really do that?”

“He’s Choi Chanhee. He can do pretty much whatever he wants.” Sangyeon says simply. “Also, Sunwoo. I’m sorry about Donghyuck. I feel like he hasn’t even met me but already has this terrible impression of me from what happened today with his father. I’ll try to impress him when we actually meet.”

“Is that your way to tell me I should introduce him to you? If so, you need to be more discrete.”

“Well, think with me. Why did Hyunjun introduce Bomin to me and why can’t you do the same with Donghyuck? I’m a cool father in law.”

“Then why won’t you ask Youngjae to introduce Felix to you?”

“Am I talking about Youngjae or you, Sunwoo? God. What I mean is, I’m a cool father in law. You shouldn’t be scared of introducing your boyfriend to me. I promise I won’t fucking floor him or anything.”

“A cool father in law. That’s new.”

“I’m not a regular dad. I’m a _cool_ dad, excuse you.”


	14. texting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon finds out what LOL means the hard way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ao3 ate my draft, so here i am, writing these notes for the last time (i'm hoping, pray for me). the original account was deleted and i can't find any other texting account that posted similar to this, but [this](https://twitter.com/Oliver___Ward/status/1051553403040612352) was the closest i could find to op's tweet. anyways, i knew i went missing for a couple of days but well. i really appreciate all the kind messages i got from you guys, it means a lot! happy reading ♡

**_[Sangyeon White and the 3 Devils (3)]_ **

[ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:34:56PM): _Your aunt just called, grandma is sick_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:35:38PM): _We’ll go visit her this weekend_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:35:55PM): _I’ll pick you up at school later, LOL, KYS_ ]

[ **˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ hwall** (12:35:55PM): _do you even know what lol means_ ]

[ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:38:44PM): _Lots Of Love?_ ]

[ **youngjae (❁ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)** (12:39:27PM): _…that ain’t it_ ]  
[ **youngjae (❁ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)** (12:39:56PM): _try again_ ]

[ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:41:23PM): _Little Old Lady_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:42:35PM): _Laws Of Life_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:42:59PM): _Lord Oh Lord_ ]

[ **₴Ʉ₦₩ØØ** (12:45:44PM): _lmaooooo dad_ ]  
[ **₴Ʉ₦₩ØØ** (12:46:37MP): _who told u 'lol' was lots of love?_ ]  
[ **₴Ʉ₦₩ØØ** (12:47:22PM): _it means laughing out loud btw_ ]

[ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:50:54PM): _That bitch_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:51:43PM): _I’m gonna kill him_ ]

[ **˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ hwall** (12:38:44PM): _who?_ ]

[ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:38:44PM): _Jaehyun_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:38:44PM): _Also, what does 'KYS' mean?_ ]

[ **youngjae (❁ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)** (12:38:44PM): k*ll yourself]

[ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:38:44PM): _Oh_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:38:44PM): _Okay, kids_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:38:44PM): _Dad is sending lots of love_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:38:44PM): _Keep yourselves safe_ ] [ **Lee Sangyeon** (12:38:44PM): _I’ll pick you up later_ ]

[ **˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ hwall** (12:38:44PM): _bye dad!_ ]  
[ **youngjae (❁ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)** (12:38:44PM): _see you later <3_]

 

Sangyeon feels his cheeks redden from embarrassment. He’s never felt more embarrassed in his entire life, and for a walking disaster like himself, that sure says a lot.

So of course, after making a fool of himself in front of three teenage boys, Sangyeon goes to Dr. Google and checks every single acronym possible and tries his best to get educated in internet language, or whatever that’s called. Sangyeon spends his entire lunch hour browsing through a website called Twister looking at memes and internet culture. That’s how determined he is to fully understand and to blend in with his children. Rather than, he’s just gonna join them.

“Listen up, kids. There’s nothing meme about smoking cigarettes. It’s not Netflix and Chill to do drugs. Fidget spin yourself to church instead.” It’s the first thing Sangyeon says, as soon as the triplets get in the car and settle down in the back and front seats. He watches their faces contort in confusion, and then in pure cringe, eyebrows furrowed and. Sangyeon smiles, totally clueless. What was wrong? Isn’t that how kids talk nowadays? “Was that cool enough?”

Sunwoo fake coughs. Hyunjun elbows him in the stomach, and they seem to have some sort of silent discussion, exchanging angry glares and pointing back and forward at each other. Sunwoo apparently lost, so he sighs and says, “You need to be arrested after saying that shit.”

Shit. Definitely not cool enough.


	15. needed break

It’s Saturday afternoon — Sangyeon is busy, lost in another world, reading this new novel the boys got him for his birthday, sitting outside on the balcony under the sunny weather. The boys are busy doing something, all three together in one of their rooms, and Sangyeon takes a deep breath. This is one of the very few moments that Sangyeon gets to completely relax and enjoy a little bit of quiet and peace. It’s nice to have some time for himself every once in a while.

That, of course, until Youngjae bursts in, knocking the door open. Sangyeon doesn’t take the eyes off his book. Maybe if he pretends not to hear him and don’t acknowledge his presence, Youngjae will go away and go back to whatever he was doing.

“Dad, Hyunjun sprained his ankle!”

“Mmmhmmm.” 

“Sunwoo is attempting to give him stitches!”

“Uh-uh. That’s great, boys. I’m glad you’re having fun.”

“Dad? Can you maybe, uh, help us out?”

“Why don’t you ask your mom?”

“We don’t have one???”

Seeing that Youngjae isn’t going to give up, Sangyeon sighs in defeat. Goodbye to his Sangyeon time, it appears.

“Dad this, dad that, I can’t have one minute of quiet in this house. Ugh.”

“Hyunjun probably broke his ankle?”

“Couldn’t he wait another day? Or other two hours? Fine. Get them, let’s go to the hospital.”


	16. australian boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon discovers Youngjae's boyfriend, Felix, isn't as real as he thought he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry i've been gone? life is a mess but hey ya girl is dating and sappy 24/7 now so writing happier things will be a lot easier. i'm enjoying this weird creative flow, and i hope you are too. second update will be up somewhere later today or earlier tomorrow. i'm gonna be home by myself so hey if you're in the lisbon area and wanna hang out let a girl know i guess? have a great one lovelies MWAH

“Dad, is it okay if Felix spends a few days with us?” Youngjae asks, ever so sweet, wrapping his arms around Sangyeon as resting his chin on Sangyeon’s shoulder. Sangyeon is busy now, flipping sunny side eggs on a frying pan, but well, Youngjae doesn’t seem to mind. Sunwoo is helping him with the cooking, rinsing the rice on the sink besides him; Hyunjun has already set the table and is now on his phone, scrolling through cat videos on Instagram. Youngjae was on the phone with Felix until he walked into the kitchen, something tells him. Youngjae is really smart. He knows how to work his way to get Sangyeon to do (mostly) everything he wants.

“Felix? Your boyfriend?” Sangyeon replies. Felix this, Felix that, Youngjae talks so much about this boy yet Sangyeon has never met him. Of course, he’s seen pictures, videos, heard them on Facetime a few times too, but it still feels weird to know that Youngjae has refused to introduce him to Sangyeon in person for so long until now. Sunwoo says they’ve been together for a little over a year, that they were waiting to see how things turned out before getting too serious with their families. Still. Sangyeon wants to know who this mysterious guy who got his baby all head over heels is. “I mean, sure, why not, but is everything okay? Like, with his family and all?” 

“Yeah, everything’s fine.” Youngjae reassures him. “It’s just that his parents will be away for a week and I didn’t want him to be alone. Specially because he doesn’t have family here and all that.”

“He’s a foreigner, right? I mean, I don’t mind it, but don’t you kids have classes?”

“We have a week of school break, remember? We won’t be missing classes. Don’t worry.”

“He’s more than welcome here. Just don’t go around doing rated stuff, you’re too young and—”

“Cool. Thanks, dad. You’re the best.” Youngjae says, pressing a kiss to Sangyeon’s cheek and squeezing him in his arms. “Can we pick him up at the airport too?”

“At the airport? Why? Is he travelling?”

“Felix is from Australia.”

Oh, that’s sweet. Australia has kangaroos and koalas and—

Wait.

What? 

“Excuse me?” Sangyeon asks, taken back. The eggs are burnt, Youngjae has some sort of online boyfriend and Sunwoo failed his maths exam. Dear Lord, this just gets better and better. “What do you mean, he’s from Australia? Isn’t he the boy from your English class? Does that mean you’ve never seen him in person? Lee Youngjae, that is beyond dangerous, you can’t just go around talking to random strangers on the internet, you don’t know these people, how can you trust someone you’ve never seen in person before, baby, I know you’re young but—”

“Dad, please, don’t freak out. We met online. We’ve been friends for three years. We talk on the phone every day. He’s 100% real, I can assure you that much. You can talk to him if you want.”

“If I want to talk to him? No, sweetie, you don’t get it. This boy doesn’t exist until I talk to him myself, so you call him right now. I also wanna talk to his parents. See if they know about this and the trip too.” Sangyeon says. Youngjae gulps and nods.

“Okay. I’ll do that.”

Felix Lee — or Yongbok, but Sangyeon learnt quickly that he wasn’t fond of the name — is an eighteen year old boy from Sydney, that Youngjae met in an online forum for foreigners learning English that wanted to practice their conversation skills with native speakers, and that happened to be Felix’s case. He has freckles, a beautiful smile, voice as deep as the Pacific Ocean, and overall, Sangyeon likes him. He seems genuine about liking Youngjae (or Eric, which Sangyeon found out to be Youngjae’s newly adopted English name), and even tries to converse with Sangyeon in Korean, which he deeply appreciated. 

Sangyeon is still a little taken back with this whole online boyfriend situation, because it’s new to him; heck, back in his day, people fell in love face to face, but nowadays he guesses everything is possible. Sangyeon speaks to his parents, who are totally aware of the situation and utterly that they will finally get to meet in person, and are very nice people too, just like Felix. So of course, Sangyeon agrees to have Felix stay with them for that one week that they won’t be having classes, and agrees to pick Felix at the airport when he arrives.

“Are you happy that you’ll be meeting your boyfriend in person?” Sangyeon asks, as he presses one kiss to Youngjae’s hair when they’re all cuddled up in the couch later that night.

“Happier than ever. I can’t believe this is happening. Thank you so much, dad. For being so understanding and so considerate. I didn’t think you’d understand. So thank you, really.”

“You know, I was a little sad because you didn’t tell me at first. But it’s okay. I understand why you didn’t. But from now on, please no more secrets. You should know you can count on me for everything.”

“I know, dad.” Youngjae says, sleepy, nestled in Sangyeon’s arms. “You’re the best dad in the world, did you know that?”

“Hmm, I figured. I love you, baby.”

“I love you too, dad.”


	17. cuddled up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon wants to remember what it’s like to have his three babies under his wings while they’re still babies. Eighteen year old babies. But still. Babies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fresh update a few hours after the previous one, deobis, we ride at midnight! i cried while writing for some reason? it isn't sad, it's just really soft. my dad's been traveling a lot these days, i barely saw him this month, and i miss him. i wrote this inspired by this one time he came home, and added the prompt miss [rome in asia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rome_in_asia/profile) left in the comments!!

Lee Sangyeon prides himself in being an overly caring parent — partly because he considers being a parent his full-time job, and mostly because he’s been a parent for so long, for most of his adult life, and he doesn’t remember what life is like without having kids. Sangyeon is a lawyer, yes, with a masters degree on corporate law and a doctorate on private law, but his main occupation is being a parent, and has been for a while. The triplets just turned eighteen; they’re all tall and grown up, slowly becoming their own individuals and growing to be amazing people. Nowadays, they’re so busy with school, boyfriends, dancing competitions, football tournaments and other extracurricular activities, so days like this, that Sangyeon gets to stay at home with the three of them, are rare now. Sangyeon wants to make the most of nights like this, that it’s just them, no godparents, boyfriends or friends over, lounging on the couch in comfortable silence, before they graduate high school and go away to university. He wants to remember moments like this, of the four of them together as a family, before they go their separate ways. He wants to remember what it’s like to have his three babies under his wings while they’re still babies. Eighteen year old babies. Still. Babies.

“Dad, can I sleep with you tonight?” Sunwoo asks, rubbing his eyes, as he rests head on Sangyeon’s bicep. Sangyeon blinks in surprise — that’s unusual. Sunwoo isn’t the one who clings onto him, and he is by far the less clingy out of the boys; he usually clings towards Younghoon, Juyeon and Jacob, for some reason. Youngjae and Hyunjun, on the other hand, are around Sangyeon all the time, hugging him, wanting to hold hands with him, asking for kisses and cuddles, like the babies they are.

“Of course, baby.”

“Wait. I wanna sleep with you too.” Youngjae pouts. “Can I come?”

“Duh, of course. You can come too, Hyunjunie.”

Sangyeon motions them to get up, get changed and migrate to his bedroom. 

A few minutes later, the triplets come in, with brushed teeth and in pyjamas. The bed is a little too small for four, but they make it work; Sangyeon lays down in the middle, with Sunwoo and Hyunjun cramped together on one side, and Youngjae on the other, hugging him for life. It’s a little small, which forces them to be extremely close to one another, and that’s the perfect excuse for him to hug the life out of his babies, cuddled up around him.

“Move your fat ass to the side, Sunwoo.” Hyunjun groans, tapping on Sunwoo’s shoulder. Sunwoo scoots to the side, elbowing Sangyeon on the way, and he fake coughs in pain, startling the boy. Sangyeon just laughs and pulls him closer. 

Eventually, they all settle in comfortable positions. Youngjae has one leg on top of Sangyeon’s, arm around his waist, nuzzled comfortably in his warmth. Hyunjun and Sunwoo are still cuddled together, so close Sangyeon thinks their bodies might as well just melt together into one. Hyunjun reaches for the switch on the wall and turns the lights off. Sunwoo rests his head on Sangyeons shoulder and silently asks Sangyeon to play with his hair until he falls asleep. Sangyeon presses a kiss to Sunwoo’s hair, wrapping one arm around his shoulders, and Hyunjun carefully rests his cheek on Sangyeon’s hand, sleepy.

“Good night, kids.” Sangyeon whispers. “Sleep tight.”

“Good night, dad.”


	18. wedding bells

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon realizes that he, in fact, doesn’t hate weddings.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered here in this glorious day to celebrate the union of Kim Younghoon, Choi Chanhee and myself, Kevin Moon, because no church would have us and we couldn’t find anyone to officiate for us, so yeah, that’s that.” Kevin Moon starts, voice shaking as he tries to read the printed out version of his speech. Younghoon gives him a quick look, squeezing his hand reassuringly, and Chanhee pats his thigh. The three of them are sitting side by side, Kevin in the middle, casually dressed. “Anyways! I didn’t prepare anything else for the introductory part so I’ll just read my vows now before I start crying. Please bear with me.”

Younghoon, Kevin and Chanhee are getting married. Well, kind of. It’s just the three of them, their closest friends and some relatives in this family-owned restaurant in Downtown Seoul. Instead of throwing a huge, extravagant party, they opted for a quiet, close ceremony. No reception, no party, no crazy amount of guests that don’t care for them. Just them and the most important people in their lives. Sangyeon writes down a mental note that he wants his wedding to be something like this too. Close and intimate.

“Today, I give you two my heart and the promise that from today on, I will walk with you, hand in hand. Never a step ahead or one behind, but besides you, to wherever this journey might lead us. I will take you, Younghoon and Chanhee, as you are, and will love you for who you are and for who you are yet to become. We will live, learn and love together. Today, tomorrow and forever.”

It takes less than a minute for Kevin to start crying, sobbing onto Younghoon’s shoulder. Younghoon shushes him, an arm wrapped around Kevin’s shoulder, as he wipes his tears and smiles against his cheek before kissing him. Chanhee looks at them with the biggest smile ever, eyes already glistening with tears, hands slightly shaking, and bites his lip, sighing. It’s not the first time he gets married, nor the first time he’s been in this exact position, reading his vows of undying love for Yonghoon, but now he’s confessing his undying love for both Younghoon and Kevin, the piece that was missing to make them completely perfect. Sangyeon can’t help but notice how they work perfectly together, seamless and totally in-sync at all times, and wonders if the others notice that too. They took some time to realize their love wasn’t a two people type of love, that for Younghoon to be happy, he shouldn’t have to pick between Chanhee or Kevin when he loved both and they loved each other. It took longer than it should, but time did its thing and put the three pieces of that puzzle together.

“I, Choi Chanhee, promise not to kill you with my pillow when you’re both snoring while I’m trying to sleep. I will make you bacon sandwiches for your hangovers, porridge for your flus, kimchi stews for your weeknights and banana splits for your sad days. I promise not to steal the covers intentionally, even when you know I might do that anyways. I will try my best not to watch the next episode of our favorite series on Netflix without you, no matter how much I want to. I promise to love you forever, and to be forever by your side. I didn’t want to cry, but you stupid idiots just had to start crying in front of me and now I can’t stop crying either. Fuckers. You guys are lucky I love you.”

And now all three of them are crying, bodies pressed together so tight it’s hard to tell who is who as they squish themselves into a hug. This is the first time Sangyeon has seen Younghoon so genuinely happy, smiling broad amidst crying, looking like he has the entire world in his arms as he squeezes the life out of both Kevin and Chanhee, and for someone who’s attended every single one of his four weddings, that does say a lot. Younghoon is simply shining, beaming, and Sangyeon couldn’t be any happier for them. He really hopes that can get married someday, and that Haknyeon can be the one sitting next to him, crying after reading his vows, with his laughter filling the room the same way it fills his chest. 

This is when Sangyeon realizes that he, in fact, doesn’t hate weddings. He’s been to so many, as best man, as groomsman, and he’s cried in every single one of them, and this is no exception. Sangyeon is no big crier, usually opting for the quiet and comfort of his home to cry in silence, but when Younghoon stands up and hugs him, cupping his face with his hand to look straight into his eyes and thank him for supporting him and being there for him and with him, Sangyeon starts sobbing. Younghoon isn’t a big talker, or a guy of too many words like Kevin likes to call, and that’s one of the reasons why they always got along so well; Younghoon is quiet about his affection, an ’action is louder than words’ kind of guy, so Sangyeon just lets Younghoon squeeze him in a tight hug and silently thank him for being his best mate, best friend and best man for all this time.


	19. sweet sugar papi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon takes Youngjae to the airport to pick up his internet boyfriend, Felix.

“Oh my God. I think I’m gonna faint.” Youngjae says, shaking his hands nervously as he walks around the arrival lounge in circles. Sangyeon takes his eyes off this cute puppy compilation video he’s watching and just stares at him through the frame of his glasses. “Dad, what do you do if you think you’re gonna faint? I gotta eat salt, right? Or is it sugar?”

“Youngjae, sweetie.” Sangyeon calls, tugging at his sleeve to stop him from walking in circles before Sangyeon gets dizzy. Even now, that they’re literally waiting for Youngjae’s boyfriend to pass through customs and get his bags, Sangyeon can’t believe he’s actually doing this. Of course, he spoke to Felix’s parents through Facetime a few times to make sure they knew about their relationship and everything that could happen once Felix was in Korea, from being stopped at customs to the worst case of missing his flight back home. Sangyeon promised to take care of him in case anything happened, and that he would have. “You’re fine. But in the remote case of you passing out, please do it when he gets out those doors, please. You guys can do that romantic thing when you faint and he catches you in his arms. That’s romantic, right?”

“Dad, that is… a terrible idea.” He says, laughing. “I mean, sure, it’s pretty romantic but that only works in movies. He has spaghetti arms. If anything, he’s gonna try to catch me and we’re both are gonna end up on the floor.”

“See? That’s cute. And hey, that’s something he definitely would never forget, so props to you.” Sangyeon reassures, squeezing his hand, and Youngjae laughs again, which is good. Sangyeon wants him to relax, specially now, that he is so close to meeting his boyfriend for the first time. Youngjae needs to get it together before Felix walks through that door. “Come on, baby. Stop worrying so much. Just take a deep breath and stop overthinking. It’s gonna be okay. Look. He’s already here and you didn’t faint or freak out at all, so that’s a plus.”

“Wait. JesusfuckingChrist you’re here. Oh my God. Felix. Hi.” Youngjae says, and his voice cracks for a moment. Sangyeon finds it cute. “Dad, can you turn away for a second? I don’t want you to see me give my first kiss. Please. Two seconds.”

Sangyeon takes a deep sigh and turns away. The way they look at each other it’s so sweet, so loving, and they are so sickeningly in love Sangyeon can just feel the love emanating from their tiny bodies. Youngjae loves him, this Australian kid with a voice deeper than the Pacific Ocean, freckles speckled all across his cheeks and orange hair, Sangyeon just knows it. He can feel it. This is different than seeing Sunwoo start falling for Donghyuck and eventually come to terms with his sexuality, or watch Hyunjun and Bomin growing up together to later become boyfriends. “Don’t start making out behind my back. I'm literally right here, kids.”

He tries his best to give them some privacy, and turns back at them after what he believes is enough time for a kiss, but they’re just there, hugging each other for life and giggling like the lovebirds that they are. Oh, young love. Sangyeon can’t help feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside after seeing the way they look at each other and how genuinely happy Youngjae seems to be just to finally be able to hold him. 

From what he’s heard from Sunwoo, they’ve been online friends for almost 4 years now, and have been dating for a little over a year. Hyunjun even told him that Felix has been saving up ever since they first became friends to come see him in person one day, and the day has finally come. It’s sweet. Cute, even, Sangyeon has to admit. He reminds himself to text Felix’s parents and assure them their baby has arrived safely in Korea, and to grab some pizza before they head back home. Sunwoo has already texted him complaining about being hungry and that Haknyeon is a terrible cook, so he needs to bring food or he’s going to starve to death. A true drama king.

Wonder who he got it from.

“Come on, lovebirds. You can hug for as long as you want when we get home. Let’s go.” He says, rushing the two out of the airport lobby and towards the parking lot. “Also, no making out in my car, please. Wait for when you’re alone. Oh, and Youngjae, you told Hyunjun that he has to sleep with Sunwoo for this week, right?”

“Wait, Mr. Lee, are you sure? I can sleep on the couch, or the floor, anywhere, really, it’s no problem-”

“You’re our guest, please. Plus, it’s fine. I trust you both to behave. You won’t try to do anything stupid behind my back, right?”

“Of course not, dad. We’re just going to do really cringey couple things constantly for the next seven days. I mean, we can make out and cuddle in the living room if it makes you more comfortable. So you know what we’re doing.”

“And listen to Sunwoo complain about PDA? Thanks, but I’ll pass.”

“But how are you going to be sure we’re not doing anything stupid?”

“My father senses would tell me right away, so don’t you worry about that. Just have fun and make the most out of this week together. No sleeping until noon, please, youre teenagers, go out and have fun. But don’t come back too late, though, or you’ll miss dinner.”

“Got it, Mr. Lee.”

“Felix, please. You can call me Sweet Sugar Papi too if you want.”

“Literally no one calls you that.”

“It’s never too late to try, right, Felix?”

“I mean, sure, uh, sweet sugar party? That sounds pretty cool, I guess.”

“Sweet Sugar Papi. Or just, you know, good old dad will get it done too. Sangyeon works as well. Just don’t call me Mr. Lee, it makes me feel 20 years older, and I’m already an old man.”

“Of course, hm, dad. No Mr. Lee. All good.”


	20. i love you.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “But tell me, dad, are you having, mayhaps, boy problems?”
> 
> “I’m 42, Hyunjun-ah, I’m too old to have boy problems.”

Lee Sangyeon has done a variety of so many things throughout his life that he feels like, at this point, there’s nothing really that could scare him. There isn’t any solid reason for him to be scared of proposing to his boyfriend, yet there he is, overthinking everything that could go wrong and why he shouldn’t do that. Yeah. They could just… date. Forever. No need for them to get married and possibly ruin everything they’ve built so far, no. Sangyeon wouldn’t want that. They’re happy the way they are right now. There’s no need for change. He’s sure Haknyeon would prefer it this way as well.

He doesn’t realize how late it was until he sees his eldest son entering the kitchen in pyjamas and bunny slippers, dragging his feet across the floor in a childish manner, rubbing his eyes. Hyunjun finds him amidst his breakdown, tilting his head at the half-empty bottle of wine on the table, voice so terribly soft from being sleepy Sangyeon feels his heart clench in his chest. “Dad? Are you okay?”

Hyunjun slides his hand up Sangyeon’s shoulder with a concerned look on his face. He wipes the tears away and sighs. “Yeah, baby, I’m fine. What are you doing up so late?”

“Can’t sleep.” Hyunjun says, dropping on the seat in front of Sangyeon. He takes the bottle in those tiny hands of his and smells it, contorting his face in disgust when the smell of alcohol hits his nose. “What’s got you drinking, dad?” 

“I’m just tired, Junie. You should go to sleep. Come on, dad will tuck you in.” Sangyeon replies, motioning for him to get up, but Hyunjun doesn’t budge. He knows something is up. “Hyunjun-ah? It’s late. You need to go to bed.”

“Why were you crying?”

“Dad’s going through some rough times, baby, that’s all. Nothing you should worry about.” Sangyeon sniffs, trying to smile in a reassuring way, but it doesn’t work. Hyunjun is no kid anymore. Old tricks he used to use with them when they were younger don’t fool them now. “Come on. We can talk about this tomorrow.”

“Is everything okay at work, dad? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Everything’s fine. I’m just overreacting.”

“Dad, we’re your kids. We can tell when you’re lying.” Hyunjun points out. Sangyeon sighs in defeat, running his thumb along Hyunjun’s cheek. He’s so unbelievably tall, Sangyeon still can’t believe his baby grew from being this tiny little lentil bean to this grown man. His baby is a man now. “Is this about Haknyeon?”

“How would you know?”

“Isn’t it?”

“Well, yeah, but… how…?”

“Oh, you silly! I know everything!” Hyunjun coos. “But tell me, dad, are you having, mayhaps, boy problems?”

“I’m 42, Hyunjun-ah, I’m too old to have boy problems.” Sangyeon sighs. “I’m having middle aged men problems. I wanna pop the question, but I feel like I’m going too fast. What if he doesn’t wanna get married? Or what if he doesn’t want to marry me? I mean, that’s possible, maybe he just wants to be my boyfriend and-”

“Wait, wait, stop right now. Do you even realize what you’re saying?” Hyunjun interrupts. “Dad? Can you even hear yourself right now? Haknyeon loves you. Why wouldn’t he want to marry you?”

“Because we never talked about this so I don’t actually know if he would. You know. Marry me and shit.”

“Okay, then. Tell me the worst thing that could possibly happen. Haknyeon could say no, yes, that’s a possibility, but then you’ll talk about it and work your way around it. You got this, dad. If you want to marry him, I say go for it. Me and the two idiots will be here. Jaehyun, Younghoon, Juyeonie, they will all be here too. Either way, it’s going to be okay.” 

Sangyeon wipes away the lonely tear that runs down his face, nodding. Hyunjun is right, because the worst thing that could possibly happen is Haknyeon saying no, and even in the small unlikelihood of him doing so, it still wouldn’t be the end of the world. Sangyeon never had time for real, romantic relationships until now, but it’s weird for him to admit he’s getting advice from his 18-year-old son. “When did you get so mature, hm? I don’t remember you being such a grown up. I’m supposed to be the one giving you advice, aren’t I?”

“I’ve dated more boys than you, though.” Hyunjun says, resting his head on Sangyeon’s shoulder, nuzzling against him. “It’s okay, dad. You got this. I’ll help you with the proposal tomorrow. It’s going to be perfect.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Well, unless you wanna ask Sunwoo and Eric to do it for you, then I’m sure it’s going to be perfect.”

For a matter of fact, the proposal turned out perfect. It was just them in the restaurant they went on their first date, on a separate part of the restaurant Hyunjun managed to get just for them. The food was great, the atmosphere was just perfect for a proposal and it was romantic and intimate, just like Sangyeon wanted it to go. Everything went exactly like Sangyeon and Hyunjun had planned. 

Well, there’s a little exception to that. Hyunjun may or may not have accidentally forgotten to mention that he knew Haknyeon was planning to propose to Sangyeon before Sangyeon even brought the topic up. And Hyunjun, like the little devilish goblin that he is, worked the entire dinner around so that they would propose to each other at the same time. He even texted Sangyeon to remind him of the cue to pull out the velvet ring box and get down on his knees. Sangyeon bets he did the same to Haknyeon, but Haknyeon, having the attention span of a marshmallow, didn’t bother to check his phone when it rang with a new notification. 

“Wait, so you told the kids about proposing?” Sangyeon questions, now that they’re stuck with a different wedding ring in each ring finger and regained their breaths after laughing at how Hyunjun fooled them both. “And Hyunjun offered himself to help you out? That’s unbelievable. I created a monster.”

“Well, of course, babe. I even showed them the rings!” Haknyeon explains, stuffing his mouth with spaghetti. “Hyunjun said he liked them. He’s been texting me the entire week with all these little details I shouldn’t forget. Actually, he picked out this outfit for me, and knowing him, I bet he chose yours too.”

“He did. How…?”

“It’s a couple thing kids do nowadays, wear matching outfits and all. So he wanted us to announce to everyone that we’re getting married, even in a non-verbal way. We look cute, though.” Haknyeon says, laughing. Sangyeon stares down at his clothes and something inside his brain clicks. The white button up, the black tie and blazer, the red cufflinks. They’re matching. “We should thank him. It would’ve been a total mess. I actually wanted to propose after we left, but now that, well, I’ve proposed to you already, it makes more sense. Why would I get down on my knees and propose in the middle of a busy street? That doesn’t sound right.”

Sangyeon tugs at his hand, rubbing circles on his skin, and smiles. This feels right. Both of them proposing to each other at the same time and laughing it off. It’s just them, and that’s what feels right “So. We’re getting married, huh, future husband? Guess you’ll be stuck with me, my baby goblins and my dad jokes forever.”

“Your jokes aren’t that bad.” Haknyeon protests, and Sangyeon has to laugh. He really has to laugh. Love really is blind.

“Yes, they are. You only think that because you love me and love has made you dumb.”

“That’s not true! If anything, love has made me smarter. Remember that joke I told you last week?”

“Say it again.”

“The other day I had a dream that I was swimming in orange soda. Guess it was just Fanta sea!”

“Haknyeon, that was terrible.”

“Was not! You just smirked! And now you’re laughing! See! I’m funny and smart!”

“Yes. You’re funny, you’re smart, you’re sugar, spice and everything nice and I love you.”

“Gross.” Haknyeon laughs in fake disgust, now squeezing Sangyeon’s hand ever so slightly. “But I love you too. Probably more than you do, and no, we won’t argue about this, we know it’s true. So just take it. We’re getting married. Wow. Let that sink in.”

“What does it want now?”

“I love you.”


	21. graduation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The triplets graduate and Sangyeon is rather loud about being proud of his babies.

Lee Sangyeon prides himself in being a pretty loud parent when it comes to being proud of his babies — partly because his kids are, indeed, all sorts of amazing and wonderful in his incredibly unbiased opinion, and mostly because he can never keep his mouth shut when talking about his kids. Even when it comes to the smallest, most irrelevant things like receiving honor and merit awards at their school at the end of each term, winning some local football tournament, being invited to participate in some big renowned dance academy’s recital, you name it, Sangyeon is very loud about being proud. Very, very loud, to the point it’s almost obnoxious. Not that Sangyeon cares, anyway. 

So of course, on the triplet’s high school graduation, Sangyeon had to go all out. He got Kevin to design congratulatory banners for each of them, besides buying them bouquets of flowers so big he could barely hold them and printing a picture of their family onto a T-shirt to wear underneath the button up shirt he was wearing to the ceremony, only to rip it open for the pictures. There is no way in hell he’d miss this golden opportunity to let every single parent, relative and friend of every student in that graduation ceremony know how proud he is of his babies.

Luckily for them, each student is allowed to bring five guests, so that allows everyone in their family’s closest circle of friends to come, including Haknyeon, the godfathers, their plus ones and Sunwoo’s and Hyunjun’s boyfriends. In total, they fill up three rows of seats. Sangyeon coordinates the sitting arrangement in a way that the tallest people are in the back with the banners, the loud people in the middle row so they can start the chanting and screaming. The first row is reserved for Sangyeon and the boyfriends, who will hand them their flowers once they come down off stage. It’s perfectly staged so that they make a remarkable exit of this phase of their lives. 

The triplets are called in alphabetical order, going Lee Hyunjun, Lee Sunwoo and Lee Youngjae, respectively, and they all yell so loud it startles someone’s grandmother sitting in the row in front of them. Sangyeon whispers an apology, smiling awkwardly before he goes back to screaming his lungs out until they’re all with their diplomas and off stage. 

Hyunjun has to do the most, doing the most extra power walk towards them, flashing his fur coat and diploma, posing as if he’s in the runway while Bomin, Jaehyun and Sangyeon take 300 pictures of him each. Youngjae holds his diploma and screams as he runs to jump into Sangyeon’s arms. Sangyeon spins him around before putting him down and kissing his cheek. Sunwoo pulls out his phone and a tiny speaker from his pocket before he turns on some rap music and starts walking. Juyeon and Younghoon go running towards, pretending to take pictures of him as he proudly walks down the hall, showing off his diploma. 

Sangyeon kisses each of them before handing them the flowers and gathering them for pictures. The triplets are up first for a picture of the three, then with the godparents and significant others, then just the godparents, with their boyfriends and then some with himself, of course, he needs those pictures for the empty frames in his desk back in the office, and his wallpaper is a picture of them when the kids were still little. He makes Eric pose with a portrait of Felix because Felix isn’t able to be physically there.

“Ah, kids, I’m so proud of you.” Sangyeon gushes, squeezing them into a hug. “I’m so happy for you. I can’t wait to drive you to university on spring.”

“Oh my God, Sangyeon, why do you have to be such a dad all the time?” Jaehyun groans, pulling the triplets away from him to pepper kisses on their faces and gush over how happy he is as their second father. “Let them enjoy their graduation and their well-deserved rest after working their asses off for the past 3 years. Let’s talk about university when it’s time for it, now we’re going out for lunch and we’re going to talk about good things, like me meeting their boyfriends for the first time. Hello, kids, I’m their father, Jaehyun, nice to meet you.”

Donghyuck shakes Jaehyun’s hand before Sangyeon steps up. 

“No, he’s not. I’m their father, Sangyeon. This clown over here” He intervenes, pointing his chin at Jaehyun, “is Youngjae’s godfather. Don’t pay him any mind, he doesn’t know what he’s saying. We made a reservation for lunch, let’s get going!”

“Listen here, Sangyeon-” Jaehyun tries to say, but Changmin covers his mouth and pulls him away. “He doesn’t want to say anything. Let’s go get lunch, I’m starving!”


	22. high school musical

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon discovers a new side of Sunwoo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well. This is awkward. I've been meaning to write this a really long time ago, but I, the huge procrastinator that I am, kept pushing it with the excuse that I was swamped with uni work, then that I was busy getting used to my new routine (now that I transferred to another school), and then midterms, but enough of that. I'm still in midterms, but it's been so long since I last updated (almost 3 months!!!!) and I decided it's been enough. So here I am, sitting on my local Starbucks and posting this before I go hop on another 6-hour long phone call to finish a group project for consumer psychology, we going streaks! 
> 
> Again, I'm really sorry about the wait! I'd like to welcome all the new people that started reading since my last update and thank everyone that waited for this update! Hope you enjoy it, happy reading! ♡

“So, Donghyuck!” Sangyeon clears his throat, taking a sip of his glass of wine before looking towards Sunwoo’s boyfriend, Donghyuck, who’s sitting across from him. The boy tucks a strand of hair behind his ear, shifting in his seat, ears flushed pink, and smiles politely at him. “Sunwoo never really told me how you two met. Well, he doesn’t really tell me anything important these days because he doesn’t want me to be nosing into his personal life, but that’s beside the point. I’m curious! Are you in the football team? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in a match before.”

“Hmm, not really! I didn’t make it to the team, because my schedule is too packed with practice for the track and field and drama club rehearsals. We do have some classes together, though, like chemistry and biology. We’ve been lab partners for almost 2 years now, I think?” Donghyuck explains. “But we didn’t really meet in school. We actually met during the summer, and then we got closer during the rehearsals for the winter production.”

“Winter production? Oh, Sunwoo was doing backstage? I didn’t know!”

“Sunwoo was actually the male lead.” Donghyuck points out. Sunwoo visibly sinks into his seat, quieting down all of a sudden. “He’s a great actor, and a great singer too. I’d love to take him to the drama club with me, but you know how he is. He’s shy.”

“Sunwoo was what?” Sangyeon blinks in confusion. Sunwoo, his Sunwoo, was the male lead for a school play and he didn’t know? Sangyeon had no idea Sunwoo even liked those things. He tries to catch Sunwoo’s eye, but his son is busy pretending to do small talk with Younghoon and Chanhee to look at him, cheeks red. “Why didn’t you tell me you were in the school production? I’d love to have gone see you perform, you ass!”

“I didn’t know how to tell you, dad.”

“You didn’t know how to tell me? Why?” Sangyeon repeats. He takes a look around the table, and no one else seems surprised by the fact that Sunwoo is not only into acting and singing, but apparently very good at it, to the point he got casted as the male lead. Sangyeon doesn’t know why he’s the only one that didn’t know about this crucial piece of information about his very own son. “Wait, they knew? You told them but didn’t tell me? I’m your father, Sunwoo!”

“It’s because you’re embarrassing. You yell a lot, you laugh louder than anyone else and you laugh of things that aren’t even funny in the first place. Also, you don’t know how to turn off your phone’s flash.” Jaehyun pipes in in Sunwoo’s defense, mouth stuffed with pork belly. “Maybe if you weren’t such an embarrassing parent, he’d have invited you.”

“Oh, shut the fuck up, hag, as if you weren’t embarrassing yourself. You cried when they graduated middle school, you have no say here. Plus, I’m a cool dad! World’s Best Dad! Right, kids?” He asks, looking hopefully at Hyunjun and Youngjae. Youngjae tries not to laugh because he’s midway through chugging his glass of water but ends up choking on an ice cube. Changmin comes to his recue, patting his back until he stops coughing. Sangyeon sulks in his seat. “Oh my God. Am I really that embarrassing? Why didn’t you tell me I was embarrassing you?”

“You always look so happy when you’re embarrassing us. We didn’t want you to feel bad for it.” Hyunjun coos and pouts, resting his head on Sangyeon’s shoulder. Sangyeon gives him a side eyed look. Hyunjun’s pout grows bigger as he rests his chin on his arm, sliding an arm around his shoulder and hugs him tight, grinning happily. He wonders when did Hyunjun, as skinny as one can possibly be, became this strong. “We didn’t want to ruin the fun for you, dad.”

Sangyeon playfully grabs Hyunjun’s lips with the tips of his fingers. He stops pouting for a second, but pouts again when he ducks in to press a kiss to Sangyeon’s cheek. Sangyeon pretends to brush it away. “You kids are lucky you’re cute, otherwise I’d be very upset. Or worse. I could embarrass you in front of your boyfriends. How about I show you some baby pictures? Sunwoo had the cutest little frown when he was a baby, he looked mad every time we’d try to take a picture of him. And Hyunjun, oh, Hyunjun had the most adorable bowl cut. Do you wanna see it, Bomin?”

“Dad. Please, don’t do this.” Hyunjun asks, snaking his arms around Sangyeon and trying to get his phone away from him before he tried to pull out the most embarrassing childhood pictures Sangyeon hoarded on his phone. “Sunwoo. Do something, you idiot.”

“I never went for an ugly bowl cut like you did. My baby pictures are cute. I have nothing to hide.”

“Actually, Sunwoo, I have pictures of when you tried to cut your bangs by yourself and when I asked you what happened to your hair, you told me it was always like that. Do you wanna see those, Donghyuck?” Sangyeon teases, much to Sunwoo’s despair.

“Dad, please, I’ll do laundry for one month without complaining! Two months! I’ll do all the chores until we’re off to uni, please, don’t show him these pictures!”

“Okay, honey, that’s enough. No more terrorizing the kids with their baby pictures. You act as if you didn’t have aby embarrassing pictures of yourself when you were younger, which Younghoon so kindly proved to me it isn’t true. So!” Haknyeon says nonchalantly, snatching the phone from Sangyeon’s hands and shoving it down his pants before he sits down and goes back to flipping through the dessert menu as if nothing happened. “How about we pay the bill and then go out for some ice cream? On Sangyeon, of course.”

Sangyeon grunts.

“Ice cream! Ice cream!” Youngjae starts chanting. Younghoon joins, and sooner than he knows, the entire table is chanting for ice cream. Sangyeon has never wanted to bury his head into the ground and disappear as much as he wants now. “Ice cream!”

“Ugh, fine. Let’s go.”


	23. hey, baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon and Haknyeon finally get married.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanted to give you guys a heads up and say 90% of this is dialogue. Also, I took how they met from [this lovely spin off wroten by my gf Mar](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16879986). Basically Sanghak reading their vows to each other and being sappy. Don't mind me, we're 23 out 25 chapters done and I don't know how to process it. Woo. Yikes.
> 
> Please consider joining the [TBZ](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/2019_The_Boyz_We_Love_Fic_Exchange) [fic](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdMImOgb7s5D5Z6G5Tj_0wtXbNQgtbaOAkBkjaqR859siEM1A/viewform?usp=sf_link) [exchange](https://twitter.com/theboyzwelove) if you have time! It's a small gift exchange organized by me and [@cluelesskaru](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cluelesskaru) for deobis to confraternize and interact! Also, I wouldn't remember if I've already done this, but hey, we have a [TBZ server](https://discord.gg/YcqhuMX) on Discord! Feel free to join us anytime!
> 
> Anyways! Happy reading! ♡♡♡

“Back when I first started at the company, my supervisor at the time told me not to go to the copy room in the 11th floor no matter how badly I needed those copies because the copy machine would always be jammed and no one seemed to know how to fix it. Little did my supervisor know is that there actually is someone that knows how to unjam that goddamn copy machine. _You._ I remember it was super early in the morning and I was about to give my first briefing and I didn’t print enough copies, so there I was, the first person in the office trying to unjam the copy machine, and failing, if I might add. And you showed up, unjammed it and cracked the most tear-able joke ever. That’s when I fell in love with you. I found the love of my life in you, Sangyeon. I promise to care for you as much as you care for me, and to make you smile as much as you make me smile, even if that means coming up with the lamest of jokes just to see you smile. It’s a small price to pay to be with you for the rest of my life.”

 

Haknyeon sniffs, hands shaking as he manages to finish reading his vows, the A4 piece of paper nothing but a crumpled sheet in his tiny hands. Sangyeon wipes his tears away with his thumb, caressing his cheek.

 

This is it.

 

The moment Sangyeon never thought would come.

 

_His wedding day._

 

Sangyeon can’t say he isn’t nervous. _He is._ He wrote his vows dozens of times, showed them to the triplets who made comments on how tacky he was and how it didn’t matter how many times he wrote the vows, he’d never be completely satisfied with them, so Sangyeon decided to stick with the latest version and roll with it. Sangyeon knows he probably won’t be able to read it, anyways. He knows himself enough to know he’s going to cry for sure. Probably before he even has time to start reading the vows. He just knows this is too much of an emotional moment for him not to cry.

 

He starts tearing up with the mere _thought_ of their wedding. Crying is absolutely guaranteed.

 

There are so many things he’s worried about, like his hands shaking when he slides the ring onto Haknyeon’s finger and he ends up making a fool of himself in front of everyone, or that the ring might not fit even though he knows it fits perfectly because they went to the jeweler together to get them adjusted. He worries about his parents’ reaction to him marrying another man who’s a lot younger than him, or how _he_ will react if his parents come at all. Haknyeon reminds him not to go too hard on himself, because weddings are stressful by nature and that he’s already stressing too much about every little thing that could possibly go wrong.

 

This is supposed to be the second happiest day of Sangyeon’s life, only after the day the triplets were born. They notice how stressed he is about the wedding and decide to divide tasks to take some of the burden of organizing an entire wedding party off his shoulders. Hyunjun gets in charge of the invitations and their outfits, as the fashionista of the family. Sunwoo deals with the boring part, like mailing the invitations, going to their grandparents’ house to try and convince them to come to their wedding and ensuring. Youngjae stays with the venue, making sure the food being served is good and that the reserved part of the restaurant doesn’t look _too bad_ for pictures.

 

Sangyeon takes a deep breath. He can’t wait to slide the ring onto Haknyeon’s finger and officialize their relationship as husband and husband. He’s surrounded by the people he loves the most – his kids, his friends, and Haknyeon – celebrating what’s arguably the most important moment of his adult life. Even if reading the vows becomes a crying session, just the fact that he gets to be surrounded by so many people who love and care for him is enough.

 

“Dating a coworker is probably the most adventurous thing I’ve ever done throughout my entire career. Yes, I know, I’m an adventurous guy, please, Jaehyun, leave me be. I didn’t think I’ve ever find anyone who’d ever want an old man with kids, but I guess there are people crazy enough for everything.” Sangyeon laughs. Haknyeon punches him lightly in the shoulder. “I promise to love you forever, regardless of what comes upon us. You’ll make mistakes, questionable decisions, decisions I particularly don’t agree with, like throwing me a bachelor’s party instead of going to your own, or impulsively adopting six piglets that you knew for a fact we couldn’t keep. You’ll fuck up, and that’s okay because I love you and we’ll grow from our mistakes, bad decisions and fuck ups together. You are one of the most spontaneous, gentle and carefree people I know, and I love that about you. I love everything about you, actually, but you already know I do. There’s nothing I want more in this world than your happiness. Even when times are hard, even when we grow used to a routine and our love grows comfortable, I will always be there to love and cherish you. I’m very grateful for having you be a part of my life. I really don’t think I’d have it any other way.”

 

He needs to stop to take another deep breath. His voice is shaking and his eyes are watering and he’s so physically overwhelmed by happiness and love that he can’t even think straight. “Ju Haknyeon, will take me, Lee Sangyeon, as your husband?”

 

“From this forward, for better or for worse. For richer or for poorer. In sickness and in health,” Haknyeon starts, sniffling, but still managing to slide the ring onto Sangyeon’s finger. The ring feels lightweight around his finger, though it carries a lot more weight than that. It’s a lot more than just a gold band around his finger; it’s a promise. Their promise to love and cherish each other forever. It’s his promise to Haknyeon, that he’ll stay no matter what they go through, and Haknyeon’s promise to him. That Haknyeon will stay no matter how rough things get. That their love will remain the same regardless of whatever might happen. “To love and cherish you until death tears us apart.”

 

_“I love you so much. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”_

**Author's Note:**

> You can leave me prompts and requests for this AU on my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/luftschIosser) and [CuriousCat](https://curiouscat.me/001115)! See you! ♡

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [blooming days](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16879986) by [moehak](https://archiveofourown.org/users/moehak/pseuds/moehak)




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